One Piece: Age of the Four Seasons
by Grandmaster Briz
Summary: Whitebeard is dead and even in the four blue seas pirate crews are rising up at every island to pursue One Piece in response to Newgate's last words. Well, at least most of those chumps are pursuing the treasure, a certain four crews couldn't care less as they have their own goals to fulfill. AotFS follows these crews through their blue seas up to the Grand Line!
1. Intro

Disclaimer: We do not own One Piece in any way

One Piece Fanfic: Age of the Four Seasons

By: Grandmaster Briz, peanutbutterlung and KairaKara101

With Credits to: Jerry, Oggytheogre321 and Rose 'ire Trinity

Intro:

This Fanfic takes place roughly around the time of The Great Whitebeard War. It contains the stories and adventures of four different pirate crews as they make their way throughout Eiichiro Oda's world of One Piece. These pirate crews will be interacting with both cannon and original characters. Each pirate captain, and in some cases the entire crew itself are represented by one of the four seasons. You are by no means obligated to read about all four crews! Just pull the tab down and select a chapter of the crew you want to read about!

The Four Crews:

(Spring) The Oregano Pirates(By: peanutbutterlung): Captained by Oregano of the West Blue. A young man looking for adventure wherever he goes. Cursed with an unlucky side, Oregano sets off into the world of piracy with his pet koala Polen. Taking every day in stride and loving the idea of freedom above all else this sharpshooting, animal loving, free spirited and very unlucky captain never has a dull day.

(Summer) The Burning Sun Pirates(By: Grandmaster Briz):A rather large crew from the west blue captained by the savage, orange juice loving Sorus "The Burning Sun". Sorus is a very angry individual with two vicious double-swords that he spins rapidly to perform his "Burning Sun Style." Enjoy reading as many glasses of orange juice are crushed and many battles are fought.

(Autumn) Blackroot Pirates(By: KairaKara101) Led by the quiet, and spaced out Kaiyou Aeris of North Blue. Kaiyou decided that she was tired of being the outcast of the village, so she picked up her valuables and set sail on an adventure to the one place she felt at home, the sea. Join Kaiyou as she hunts the seas to uncover the mysteries surrounding the illusive "Reaper of Morana".

(Winter) The Rift Pirates(By: Grandmaster Briz):The perpetually lazy, pessimistic, rude, and clever Soso Brizan was only seventeen and performing odd jobs around his frigid south blue island just north of the South Pole when an unfortunate chain of events involving a strange fruit and a corrupt marine forces him to leave his island. Now nineteen, Brizan and his twelve year old outlaw friend "Wildcard" Orrahn make their way through the south blue, making powerful friends, defeating dangerous foes and even crashing into a couple of rocks along the way in hopes of getting rid of the bounty on his head.

A/n: Hey everyone! Thanks for checking our story out, we have noticed that quite a lot of people stop at this page without even reading the actual story. If you have any recommendations just shoot us a pm, thanks!


	2. Oregano Chapter 1

Disclaimer: We do not own One Piece in any way.

Oregano's Journey Begins!  
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By: peanutbutterlung (Whale)

Early Morning on Plisboro Cove

"Hey Oregano you up there or what? Little Tilitia is waiting down here for her piano lesson!" A hurried voice shouted from downstairs.

"Ayeee shoot! Yeah I'll be right down bro! Sorry Little Tilitia I'm on my way!" Oregano shouted back as he was abruptly shaken out of the dream he was currently enjoying about a heroic dog clad in shining armor. Oregano rubbed his eyes and then looked over to his alarm that he was sure he had set the night before. It was then that he noticed that the cord had been unplugged and was currently hanging loosely from a fuzzy paw.

Shaking his head at this silly sight, Oregano proceeded to place his feet on the floor, stretched, and then walked over to scoop up his snoozing pet Koala off of his bed and placed him on his shoulder.

His koala was named Polen, and upon being picked up he began to show that he was not too fond of being rushed in this manner and let out an annoyed grunt. Oregano was by now too excited however to stop and baby the koala, and simply pet Polen's fuzzy head in hopes of soothing him back to sleep. Today was going to be an amazing day! Oregano could simply feel it in his bones.

As Oregano ran down the hall from his room towards the stairs to begin teaching the piano lesson he was late for, he looked down at his sleeping pet on his shoulder with a proud grin, Polen was practically his best friend. They had been through everything together ever since he adopted him from a local pet store in town four years ago.

"Our dreams of adventure are about to come true little guy! I can't believe this is the last piano lesson I have to teach! ... I have finally saved up enough beli over these years to buy my very own ship!" he whispered. Polen was out cold in dreamland however so these words were mainly just Oregano psyching himself up.

All this psyching was leading to Oregano getting lost deep in thought about his wishes finally coming true. While in this daze like state however, he still continued to run towards the stairs so he could begin his final lesson. This combination of running, stairs and obliviousness suddenly resulted in many consecutive crashes and many helpless yelps from Oregano and Polen alike as they began to tumble wildly.

"Oyeee!" Oregano squealed as he went airborne after a hard bounce from landing on a step towards the end of the staircase. This fall ended dramatically as he fell and rolled down in front of the door where his older brother and little Tilitia were both standing. Both had their hands pressed tight to their faces in embarrassment due to what they had just witnessed.

This unfortunate event was not yet over for poor Oregano however, as he quickly began to hear the sound of enraged growls coming from beside him. The noises were coming from Polen and the koala suddenly let out a thrashing on his master's face. This attack was well deserved in Polen's mind for in his mind for almost being killing him in his sleep. Oregano couldn't help but shout out for mercy as his marsupial companion let loose.

"Poleeeeeeeeen! I'm sorry! Aye stop it you biscuithead!" Oregano desperately shouted, still temporarily crippled from his terrible fall.

Sprawled out pitifully on the ground, Oregano looked up towards little Tilitia and his brother hoping one of them would find it in their hearts to remove the crazed Koala from tearing his face up any more than he already had. Luckily his brother finally managed to pick the koala off of him after what seemed like a year and a half for Oregano. Then with one fluid motion Polen was tossed into the adjacent kitchen.

"Eat up little guy, Dad made your favorite snack." The brother exclaimed as the Koala immediately forgot all about his recent near -death experience and darted to eat the meal that had been prepared for him.

Oregano looked up miserably to his brother with a bleeding, scared and bruised face. He raised a shaking hand hoping for comfort but he instead received a sudden stomp to the chest from his brother who then shouted down at him.

"Get up and teach poor little Tilitia! The fact that she has been waiting so long for a lazy teacher like you is a shame! Plus you go and pull that stair falling act and everything as well! Are you trying to scar the poor child or what?!"

Oregano clumsily rose to his feet, masking his pain and holding back the blood he felt could pour out his nose at any moment. He then softly whispered. "Yes of course, right this way young lady." He then led the red-faced and embarrassed girl in pigtails to the music room for her lesson. His brother on the other hand shook his head as he walked into the kitchen.

"You can go ahead and start getting warmed up, I need to speak with my brother about something really quick. I'll be right back I promise!" Oregano explained to little Tilitia as he began wrapping his head with a convenient bandage he found on a nearby dresser.

Little Tilitia hesitantly nodded, she was a little relieved she could finally be by herself for a moment after the drama she had just experienced firsthand. Oregano gave her a quick thumbs up sign as he walked away and into the kitchen where Polen was chewing loudly on the Eucalyptus leaf sushi that had been prepared for him.

Oregano smiled at Polen as he walked past him seemingly forgetting that a few moments ago that the very same koala was trying to murder him. He then continued his walk towards the kitchen counter where his brother was now hunched over reading today's newspaper.

As he strolled up to the counter he glanced over the paper and one article managed to catch Oregano's eye. The words 'Mysterious Candy Cloud' were in bold and grabbed at Oregano's desire for wonder and adventure. Before he could get hooked any further however he was yelled at so fast by his brother his interest in the article left him in an instant.

"Why are you not teaching little Tilitia her lesson?" Oregano's brother questioned. The answer to his own question suddenly hit him though. "Oh oh, I remember now, you told me last week didn't you? This is your last lesson huh?"

Oregano grinned as he replied "You got it Dill! I was just wondering if we were still cool for today about our plans on leaving." Oregano responded back to his brother.

Dill took a pause and then continued. "Alright I will get things set up at the force so that they won't interfere with you."

Oregano threw his hands up in the air from joy after hearing this. "Awesome thanks Dill! I would never get away without you!" Dill shook his head as he scoffed "Even though you are crazy, you are still my brother and I will always go out of my way for you… Now have you finished your goodbye letter to Mom and Dad yet?" Dill asked as he reached for a nearby cup of coffee and took a slow sip.

Oregano nodded with a strong face. "That was the hardest thing for me to do, but yeah man it's done. I left it on the nightstand in my room."

Dill nodded as he responded sternly "Well then I'm off to the station. You go on and teach that last lesson of yours ok pal? Oh and be at the western cove and set sail between the hours of 7:00 and 8:00 pm."

Oregano nodded as he watched his brother head towards the door. Dill suddenly stopped and with tears streaming down his face he muttered. "Promise me man… Promise you will be careful out there."

Oregano's eyes began to leak tears as well as he sobbed a reply. "I promise! I will live the ultimate life of freedom!" Dill smiled knowing that his brother would be fine and proceeded to leave the house. As he walked away from the house thoughts were heavy on his mind but he never once looked back. This was his way of showing Oregano that he had complete faith in him, and this gave Oregano a tremendous boost in confidence.

Oregano looked up to the clock in the kitchen and saw that it was currently 7:00 am giving him plenty of time before he planned on buying a ship and departing. He then suddenly noticed that little Tilitia had been practicing for a while by herself so he quickly rushed back into the music room as he wiped his tears away with one fast swipe.

"Alright Tilitia let's get started shall we?" He said with a grin as he pulled some sheet music off a nearby shelf. "Let's start with this one. It's a favorite of mine called 'The Bees Love Me'." Little Tilitia nodded at his selection and began to play the melody. Whether it was right or wrong, the music sounded heavenly to Oregano who had such high spirits that nothing could possibly bring him down.

After about two hours or so of listening to little Tilitia play the piano the lesson was finally over. Little Tilitia hesitantly pulled out the beli her mother had given her to give to Oregano. She looked up at him and smiled "Thank you for these past two years... for teaching me and stuff."

Oregano smiled back as he took the beli from Tilitia and placed his hand on her shoulder as he led her to the front door. "You sure have come a long way little Tilitia! I know that you will continue to get better! Stay with it alright?!" Tilitia nodded as she left the house and walked the dirt path from Oregano's house to the main road and eventually down into the main part of town.

Oregano then began to count the beli he had received "Let's see… alright it's all here! Ah and her Mom even gave me a little extra tip as well! What a sweet lady!" Oregano shouted as he went into the kitchen where Polen was now rummaging through the refrigerator looking for even more food.

"Hey buddy! Easy on the food! I still haven't eaten today, plus this is our last day here, we don't want to leave the family with an empty fridge you sucker." Oregano laughed as he eased passed the Koala and got some bread, a bowl of left over soup and some peppered cheese.

"Ahh this will do just fine!" Oregano exclaimed as he then prepared his meal and ate. After he was done he looked at the clock and saw it was 10:00 am. "Alright this is great! Most all of the shops are open in town now. We can go get our starting supplies like food, extra clothes, medical supplies and all that jazz."

Oregano quickly motioned for Polen to come to him as he stood up from eating. The Koala quickly scurried off into the backroom before coming back however because he couldn't be seen in public without looking all fresh in his favorite green, yellow and red striped baseball cap and his black 'cool' shades.

He absolutely had to look cool before going into town. Oregano just laughed as Polen jumped and ran up his extended arm and propped himself snugly on his shoulder. Oregano then hurried up the stairs to his room and gathered his beli that he kept in a box under his bed. He folded the stack and put it in his pocket. As he left the room the letter that he left his parents caught his eye. His eyes began to water but he knew everything would be fine. He bolted back down the stairs and out the door. It was time to buy supplies for his voyage!

Meanwhile at the Security Station

Dill had by now reached the security station located downtown where he worked as a security officer for the past four years. As he entered the station and whipped around a few corners he finally reached the time clock and was about to check in, however right before he could punch his card he heard a soft whisper from behind him say. "I can't wait to see the fireworks that are going to be shot at the western cove tonight!" Then a second voice quickly added "I know! I here it is going to be the biggest fireworks show Plisboro Cove has ever had! I hope we can get off early tonight! This is sure to be a great showing for our town's Fifty year Anniversary!"

Dill's heart sank deep into his chest as the urge to vomit quickly flowed over him upon hearing this terrible news. Naturally this news would normally be great, but with what he and Oregano had planned this was simply terribly unlucky timing. How could he have not remembered? 'Whew ok, ok, ok calm down Dill, calm down maybe the celebration is at a different time than when Oregano is setting sail' Dill hesitantly tried to reassure himself in his head.

He then turned around to his fellow officers and quickly spat out. "Say! What time is the event starting today you two?" He words came out fast and nervous, and the two officers gave him a sly look for not knowing when such a special event was being held. After a few more seconds of yanking Dill's chain through a series of facial expressions expressing their disbelief, they finally answered in unison. "7:00 pm."

Dill began to sweat profusely. "Oregano! I have to go warn him!" Dill quickly pivoted as he made a quick turn only to then find himself surprisingly face to face with the chief officer of the Plisboro Cove Security Station.

"Now then, where do you think you are off to, officer Dill? You're just the man I was looking for. I need you to come file a stack of paperwork on my desk roughly 3 feet high got it? You can't be running off, it is very important that we get this paperwork filed before the celebration tonight."

Dill's soul itself began to cry as he hung his head and followed the chief into his back office. 'Oregano you're on your own. I know you won't do anything crazy... Right?" These words seemed ridiculous the more he thought about things, he was almost positive his brother would do something crazy.

8 Hours Later on the Western Bay of Plisboro Cove

Oregano laughed happily as he looked at all the bags of supplies that he had gathered before him. He was now finally set for his journey. The bags he had gathered in town were currently sitting on the ground in front of a ledge overlooking the western bay's inlet.

The boat shop was located just below this ledge on the shore of the sea. As he looked down at the many docks where boats were currently docked and gently swaying he decided to soak things in and catch his breath before scaling the cliff before him. Sure there was an easier way to get down to the shop, but Oregano was being stubborn and decided he was already here so he would take the hard way.

Polen was already snoozing on his shoulder from the busy day of buying they had just experienced. Oregano softly pet the koala's fuzzy head to soothe the marsupial as he slept. It wasn't long however that Oregano suddenly began to hear voices coming from behind him. "Hmm what's with all the voices?" Oregano questioned as he turned to see flocks of people heading his direction with tables, chairs, food and boxes.

"Dill what in the world are all these people doing here?" Oregano questioned out loud. He had no clue about the celebration that was about to occur tonight just like his brother. He regularly would have had an idea due to the many signs and conversations he walked past while purchasing goods in town earlier today, but he was so deep into thinking about his voyage that he was completely oblivious to it all.

"Hmm well I better get out of their way." He whispered to himself as he saw more and more people heading his way. He had no idea how big the event was going to be or how long it would last, but he trusted that Dill had taken care of things, so he figured it might just be a quick fling and that the people that had shown up were going to be the only ones. So with that he scooped up all of his bags and began to scale the rocky cliff as he headed towards the boat shop beneath him.

After much effort Oregano finally made it down the cliff. He had almost fallen a good dozen or so times, but he managed to secure his footing fast enough every time before he woke his feisty koala from his slumber or dropped any bags.

Now that he had reached the bottom he plopped his bags onto the sandy walkway that led to the front door of the shop and decided to quickly approach it. He then excitedly knocked on the door until a latch could be heard which then followed with the door being swung open with a vengeance. In the doorway a massively tall lady that Oregano guessed to be around 11 ft. tall was revealed. She was lanky and had a grey complexion with hair of the same color to match.

The woman's face was perturbed and let out a frustrated moan. "Here I was already closed and ready to leave early for the show tonight and then you just have to show up!"

Oregano quickly laughed. "I'm sorry lady, I'll be fast I promise! I already have all my money ready!" The lady let out a grunt as she walked out passed Oregano and motioned for him to follow her. "You better be fast kid." She said as she led the way around the shop to the boat docks. "What's a kid like you want a boat for anyways?… oh well I don't really care." She quietly muttered to herself.

Oregano all the while immediately began to scan the ships for the one he had had his eye on for months. He didn't want to hold the lady up any more than he had to.

"Ahhh there she is!" He pointed happily at a beautiful cherry wood finished ship at the end of one of the docks. The boat lady smirked. "So you want the good old Cherry Maria huh?"

Oregano grinned at the name of the boat. He like it a lot and responded "Yes please!" He reached in his pocket and pulled out his beli. "Here you are!"

The boat lady looked down at Oregano and she took the beli form his hands and counted it. A sudden frown came to her face as she handed it back to him. "I'm afraid you don't have enough kid."

Oregano was hit with a wave of confusion. "What! I know I had enough! I even had extra saved up! I have been planning to by that ship for months!" Oregano desperately recounted his beli to find that the boat lady was indeed correct about him being short in beli. He must have lost some while shopping in town today.

"Save some more up and maybe you can come back some other time, besides we should both be heading to the celebra..." The boat lady was cut off as a sudden and unexpected boom was heard from the atop the cliff overlooking her shop. A massive red flare was then seen heading directly towards the docks of ships, it was spiraling rapidly down from the sky.

A loose firework had accidentally gone off and was now shooting out of control. "My precious ships they could all go up in flames if that touches down!" The boat lady shouted knowing this flare could very easily wipe out any or all of her collection of boats if one caught fire.

Oregano was already on the scene however and instantly reached down for his flintlock pistol that he had in his pants under his shirt and took aim. He would have preferred his rifle but that was hiding and mixed in with his supply bags. This was because a rifle was pretty hard for a guy to walk around with in his home village without being stopped or questioned.

"Don't worry." Was Oregano's fast reply to quickly reassure the boat lady. As he spoke he followed the flare with his pistol for a mere second and then fired. A direct hit was made causing the firework to extinguish immediately and fall to the rocky coast below.

Oregano smiled once he knew the crisis had been averted and was about to speak to the boat lady, when suddenly he was picked up and squeezed tight. "Yoouuuu saved my boats!" The lady yelled as she continued to hug Oregano.

While this was happening Oregano was not able to breathe but he managed to give the lady a thumbs up which finally led to her putting him down. "Listed the boat is all yours! No charge at all young man! You may have just very well saved my entire business!"

Oregano jumped up into the air with joy upon hearing this. His confusion about how and why a firework randomly went off was wiped from his mind. This jump for joy however finally woke up his pet koala that had been sleeping through all of this commotion up until this point. Polen then let out a yawn and hopped off Oregano's shoulder to explore the docks he immediately became interested in once he saw where he was currently at.

"Thank you so much boat lady!" Oregano exclaimed as he ran by her to get his bags off the shore. He grabbed them all and ran back down the dock to the Cherry Maria. She was waiting for him, his very own ship! This realization left him with a huge goofy grin that stayed glued to his face as he began to load all of his supplies. "Come on Poleeeeeeeeen!" He then shouted once the supplies were all loaded up. The koala's ears perked up as he popped his fuzzy head up from a nearby ship that he had been investigating. He didn't really want to quit exploring, and normally wouldn't be so complaisant, but due to still being a little groggy from just waking up he decided to scurry towards his master's call.

"Well now I think we are all set!" Oregano hollered to the boat lady once Polen made it on-board. The boat lady who at this point was still in tears from witnessing her boats being saved before her eyes replied. "Yes she is all yours but are you really leaving right now?" The lady was wondering if he was really not going to wait to see the celebration tonight.

"Yes! My adventure begins tonight!" Oregano responded. The old lady simply shook her head as she gave the boy and koala a wave. "Thanks again!"

Oregano waved back as he then pulled up the anchor and set off from the docks.

Once the ship was a good distance away from the docks he walked over to the large white sails flapping in the wind above him and shook his head. "No, no, no, these won't do." He muttered as he then proceeded to dig through his bags.

Meanwhile a shout finally called out from the cliff top "Hey we heard a gunshot! Is everything alright down there? Oh and sorry about the loose firework that went your way, luckily we saw it fade out and die huh?" They added not thinking the two were connected in any way.

The boat lady then shouted "Yes we are fine down here. I just made a quick sale to this kind young man and I am now on my way up to the celebration. I have wonderful news to tell of a heroic feat I just witnessed as well!" The celebration goers were relieved that everything was alright but felt the Security Force should still know about the possible gunshot. Much to their luck the officers soon began showing up to the event and were notified about the mysterious shooting before the boat lady could tell the real story. This news worried the Force so a few officers called in for some binoculars to be brought so they could search the bay for any trouble makers trying to interfere with the celebration.

As Oregano looked through the bags to find what he needed, Polen decided to go explore the new ship some. The ship was medium sized and had an under-deck cabin with a small living area, a kitchen and sleeping quarters to boot. After Polen's survey of the ship was completed, he became content with the ship and all it had to offer. This would be his home now so it was important that it passed his test. Upon completion, Polen decided to make a nest out of some branches scattered loosely about on the top deck. These branches had fallen from trees that hung off the cliffs the boat had been docked under and proved to be incredibly comfy for Polen as it wasn't long until he took another nap. Oregano was watching Polen out of the corner of his eye as he continued to look through his bags as he shook his head as he muttered "Lazy koala."

Meanwhile back on land Dill was running towards the celebration site as fast as he possibly could. He was late because of all the paperwork that got piled on him by the chief. "Crap! Oregano please don't tell me you are going to leave and set out in front of all these people! Ahh plus Mom and Dad will definitely be at the celebration tonight! Our plan is not going as planned bro!"

Oregano was now out a good distance from the docks and was now directly in front of the bay the celebration was being held at. Suddenly a few starting fireworks went off to start the celebration and this caught Oregano's attention away from his searching of his bags momentarily.

"Ah wow so beautiful!" He whispered as he looked up into the sky towards the sparkling blooms before him. Then looking back down at the cliff top he finally realized just how many people were present and he couldn't believe his eyes. "Dill you pigeon head! Could all of this be your doing? Did you… make me a going away celebration!?"

"Oregano shouted out with joy all the while trying to make sense of things. He began to tear up as he heard shouts coming from the cliff. "Gosh I have the best brother in the world! Telling me he was going to make the bay empty and then… wow pretty much getting everyone in Plisboro to see me off on my journey! I can't believe all these people support me. Mom, Dad could you be up there too?" He whispered.

Then wiping the tears from his eyes he looked back down at his bags and finally found what he had been looking for. His pirate flag! He had made it himself and it really wasn't anything flashy but it did the job. He attached it to a rope and began to raise it up the mast. It was a simple black flag with two smiling green skulls separated by his name written vertically between them.

As he raised the flag, it was about that time however that the Security Force got a hold of the binoculars they had requested and they immediately set their sights directly on Oregano. "PIRATE!" One officer immediately shouted as he zoomed in on the black flag! A terribly frantic uproar followed the shout as the people of Plisboro Cove all noticed the black flagged ship before them. The boat lady simply fell to her knees as she shook her head. "That boy… that boy is using my ship… that boy is a … pirate!" She muttered not knowing how to react especially after the heroic deed that he had done for her just minutes ago. She hadn't even had time to tell anyone about the story.

"Find out who that pirate is!" One officer from the Security Force called out. The binocular holding officers focused in on the ship and began to sweat. Suddenly a shout came from behind the crowd "What's going on?!" It was Dill and he pushed through the frantic citizens towards the edge of the cliff to see what he really hoped he wouldn't see.

But there was Oregano in all his glory, in his brand new ship, with a pirate flag just a flapping in the wind in front of the entire town. "Dill that's your damn little brother down there!" One officer shouted to Dill after seeing he had appeared on the scene. Dill simply shook his head. 'You sure know how to leave an impact don't you, you little brat?' Dill thought to himself as he gritted his teeth.

"Oregano! What is my little angel doing down there?!" A shriek called out from a lady wearing a red dress with long brown hair and a yellow bandana came running forward towards Dill.

"Sheesh that boy never learns does he?" Another voice followed with a laugh. The voice belonged to a grinning man with a beer belly and gray hair. These were Oregano's and Dill's parents.

"Dill did you know about this!? You get my baby back right now! Right this minute you hear me mister?!" The mother shouted.

"Now, now honey, maybe this is what the boy wants." The father chipped in.

"Noooo! This will just not do! He is my poor little baby boy and I need to protect him! He needs his mommy!" The mother countered desperately trying to get her son back.

Oregano was currently waving as he rode the evening breeze further and further away from Plisboro cove. He had no idea about the spectacle that he was causing atop the cliff. He simply couldn't believe his adventure was finally happening and that he was getting this kind of send-off party. Then hoping his parents were on the cliff as well as Dill Oregano shouted.

"I know I left you a letter at home but I feel a goodbye in person is much better! Mom, Dad, Dill! Thank you for everything! I will miss you all so much but don't worry! I am going to have the time of my life out at sea! I will be sure to make my mark! I'll be back in a couple years or so and I will have so many stories to tell you!"

Oregano's family began to all tear up at the words they heard as they all responded with the only phrase they could muster. "WE LOVE YOU OREGANO!"

Oregano smiled after hearing this and he began to well up with tears as well. His family supported his dream and that was all he needed to hear.

This heart-warming scene was suddenly interrupted however as the Security chief's voice cracked out over the scene at hand and what he said ruined the moment that all the townspeople were experiencing with Oregano and his family entirely.

"Ready the cannons men!" Were the words that boomed over the surrounding area.

The statement echoed through the townspeople's hearts. They were witnessing a boy living out his dreams as well as his family's strong support. They were also relieved to see that it was Oregano and that he was in fact a kind-heated pirate and not one that was planning on attacking the village like they previously feared.

Dill was shocked by his chief's order and began to run towards him. Halfway through his run however he managed to stop himself and look out at Oregano's ship. He focused on the sight before him, especially on that pirate flag that was flapping in the breeze. "I can't baby you anymore can I? You told me you would be strong and not to worry didn't you?" Dill whispered to himself. It was a moment of realization led him to recognize his brother's growth as a man.

Dill then walked back to his Mother and Father only to see that his Dad had come to the same conclusion that he had, but he was currently having to hold Oregano's mother back with all his might. She was cursing up a storm and wanted to kill the chief with everything she had. Dill calmly told her to respect Oregano's decision but it fell on deaf ears. She wanted to save her baby too bad to hear any words that didn't involve attacking the chief in some manner.

Cannon fire immediately sounded from the top of the cliff as the chief then shouted "Pirate scum! You deserve what you get for having the nerve to ruin this celebration with your image! You don't get to disgrace us and get away with it!"

Six cannons were now flying towards Oregano. "Oh wow! I guess this wasn't a goodbye celebration for me after all!" Oregano laughed as he quickly ran to a bag he had set to his side. He reached inside and pulled out his rifle.

"Well time to show my family first hand that I can handle myself!" The six cannon balls were closing in and were beginning to fall from their peaks. "Let's see here…" Oregano muttered as Polen continued to sleep on his make-shift nest made of branches.

'Crack! Crack! Crack! Crack! Crack! Crack!' Each cannon ball exploded midair as a rifle bullet pierced right through the center of each one. The crowd watched in awe as Oregano was now too far out to be hit by any further attempts that could be made to hinder him. He had successfully escaped.

Oregano's Mom was bawling back at the cliff top but after seeing this display she was comforted just a little bit. Oregano's father let out an enormous belly laugh "That's my son for ya!" he shouted.

Dill shook his head as he smiled. "Now where the hell did you learn how to shoot like that? I teach you the basics one day and you show me you can do something like this?" He let out a slight laugh and wrapped his arm around his Mother and Father.

The boat lady was still in shock at everything that had just occurred. "Well... at least he is a good pirate I suppose."

Even little Tilitia was there and let out a smile as she whispered to a group of friends she was with. "That's my goofball piano teacher I was always telling you about. I can't believe he is a pirate now."

The Security chief was flabbergasted at the display before him and threw his hat on the ground. He couldn't believe he let the pirate slip through his fingers and began to stomp on his hat that he had thrown on the ground. Once he realized he was making a scene he quietly cursed and spat under his breath and walked away. "Stupid pirate coming in and running our celebration! ... Ugh Oregano was it? I'll make sure the Marines here about you.. You can rest assured!"

Meanwhile back on the Cherry Maria

Oregano put his rifle down and smiled as Plisboro cove began to disappear in the distance. "Hey Polen! How about we get all moved in now buddy!? We can rest after that alright?"

Oregano had to holler at the koala a couple times until Polen lazily managed to get up and carry some bags downstairs into the cabin. The two organized the supplies amongst the kitchen, living area and sleeping quarters until everything looked like it was in the proper spot.

"Who knows what tomorrow will have in store for us Polen? Our adventure has finally started!" Oregano shouted still half way expecting to wake up from this all being a dream. After pinching himself a half dozen times he came to the conclusion that this was real. After began to bruise a bit from the pinches he laughed then looked at the clock hanging in the kitchen and realized they that they should probably be getting some rest.

He opened the door to the sleeping quarters and the two hoped into their beds. "We will have an amazing day tomorrow Polen. I can feel it!" Oregano said as the two began to drift off to sleep.


	3. Sorus Chapter 1

The Burning Sun Rises

Mozorella Kingdom: West Blue

"Crash!" A loud sound erupted in the room as a glass shattered into tons of little pieces, splashing orange juice everywhere.

"What is the meaning of this!" Kidarou Sorus growled in a furious rage. Sorus was sitting at his breakfast table with a newpaper in his left hand and the crushed remains of his orange juice in his right. Sorus's blood dripped to the ground as he continued to sneer at the paper's headline. "The Great Pirate Edward Newgate, also known as Whitebeard passed away yesterday." Sorus growled the first sentence of the cover story. "How can this be! This is bullshit!"

Sorus was currently the only guard in the barracks since, the others were quick to leave before Sorus could read the news. He was a man of around 33 years with messy, fiery orange hair that dropped to just past his shoulders. Sorus had a full mustache and goatee to compliment his wild hair. He also had a single cut scar that reached from the base of the left side of his chin and up through his lips and mustache. His irises were blood red in color to reflect the color of the veins that surfaced in his eyes every time he got mad, which was often.

In terms of clothing, Sorus rarely if ever wore a shirt and had various tattoos covering his muscular body. On his torso, Sorus had two red double bladed swords whose handles crossed just below his heart. He also had a demonic black gate that arched around his abs and was covered in orange flames. His back and arms were also covered in various flame tattoos, all around a single, giant read lion head at the top of his back. Around his neck he bore a single constantly damp white towel covered in red, orange and yellow flame design that he stuck to his skin to keep cool.

In stark contrast to his upper body, Sorus wore long, shiny golden pants with red flames all up the side. His pants were then tucked into a pair of black boots with gold plating at the front to strengthen his kicks.

"Im done with this shit!" Sorus growled as he stood up from the table and grabbed his weapons from the rack, which consisted of two vicious double bladed straight swords that the local blacksmith had made for him, and stormed outside.

"Uh-oh, told ya he would be pissed…man." Came a voice near from a nearby tree

"Yea like that was some kind of bold prediction, of course he was going to be mad, he always is." Came a second voice from the trees.

"Marko… Vince." Sorus seethed through closed teeth.

"Yea?" Marko and Vince said simultaneously "Man…" Marko added

"Shut the hell up!" Sorus said as he stormed off.

Marko was a rather chunky man of around 5 foot 6 in height with blond hair that was parted so it wouldn't cover his eyes. Marko wore a a purple plumed hat with a yellow feather sticking out of it and wore a pair of round spectacles with sunglass shades. He wore an open long sleeve purple and yellow dress shirt that allowed his blond chest hair to escape freely. On his legs he wore a pair on silky purple shorts with a yellow pirate sash that he kept his rifle in.

Vince on the other hand was about 6 foot 3 in height and was skin and bone. His hair was a dark red color that he wore tied back like some sort of samurai. His eyebrows were oddly bushy and flaired up at the ends. His skin was deathly pale with freckles on his face. It also did not help that he preferred to go shirtless with Japanese slacks and boots to cover his legs. To top this all off he wore a single katana at his waste.

"Hey wait up… man!" Marko called out as he chased after Sorus.

"Yo what's the big deal about Whitebeard dying anyways?" Vince added.

"Big deal…?" Sorus started through gritted teeth "HE WAS THE MOST POWERFUL MAN IN THE WORLD AND HE LET SOME WIMPASS MARINES AND ONE OF HIS OWN SUBOORDINATES KILL HIM! PATHETIC!" Sorus shouted in anger, spitting everywhere as he grabbed a rock and threw it so hard that it went straight through his door and hit the opposite stone wall of the barracks. "DAMMIT!" He yelled as he began to sulk.

"Yo, wanna train us in your Silver Sun Style?" Vince said with hope in his voice.

Sorus spun around and grinned viciously as he grabbed Vince by the throat and lifted him into the air "Its Burning Sun ya punk!" he spat at Vince's face.

"But your swords don't burn… man" Marko remarked

Sorus dropped Vince to the ground who the gasped for breath. "It's the flames of the eternal fury in my heart!" He seethed, his eyes turning blood red in anger. 

"Whatever, the king summoned the militia leaders today, you better get there… man"

"FINE!" Sorus barked as he stormed off towards the castle.

"Don't… Donchya think Sorus overreacts sometimes?" Vince gasped as Sorus marched away.

"A bit… man"

Maybe an hour later… In the castle

"Crash!" A loud sound erupted in the room as a glass shattered into tons of little pieces, splashing orange juice everywhere.

"What is the meaning of this!" Kidarou Sorus growled in a furious rage. Sorus was sitting at a large table with the king at the head and the other militia and guard leaders along the sides. Sorus's wound had reopened and he was bleeding on the table once more.

"Calm Down Mr. Kidarou." The old bearded king said with jeweled hand raised, his guards at the ready.

"CALM DOWN? HOW COULD I CALM DOWN WHEN YOUR BETRAYING US ALL!" Sorus roared as he rose to his feet.

The black haired militiaman next to Sorus stood up as well and looked him in the eye "It's not that big a d-" He started before Sorus's fist infiltrated his speak zone, knocking him to the ground, separated from several of his teeth.

"HOW COULD YOU JOIN THE WORLD GOVERNMENT!" Sorus roared some more as the kings guards rushed to restrain him.

"Whitebeard died, pirates will be on the rise, they could only add to our defenses! Now we will have trained marines here as opposed to asking our own citizen's to risk their lives for free in a militia, its good for you too Sorus!"

"THAT'S STUPID!" Sorus yelled, unable to come up with any better rebuttal as the guards grabbed him by the arms only to be kicked in the shins by his steel-plated shoes. "I'M OUTTA HERE!" Sorus yelled while he stormed out of the building, slamming the door behind him.

The king sighed and sat back down "I seriously have never met someone in my life that couldn't accept change to the degree Mr. Kidarou can't." He sighed and placed his hand on his forehead in frustration, praying that Sorus would not do something stupid.

Port City Kataro (the next day)

Sorus had only just arrived at the city yet he already was holding a man in the air by his throat. "Say that again! Why are all these World Government flags up!"

The man gasped for air "Didn't you hear me? We finally got accepted into the world government, a marine battalion and a government official are supposed to come today! It is a good thing!"

"Why would we ever join the World Government, we have been perfectly fine on our own so far!" Sorus spat as he threw the man to the ground. "I guess I'll just get my ship and leave this hopeless country." Sorus concluded as he began to walk away.

The man slowly stood up and brushed himself off "Well I better inform you that all ships are being moved from the main docks to allow the marine fleet to arrive here."

"WHAT!" Sorus roared, causing the man to fall back to the ground in terror. "Damn the marines!" sorus muttered as he ran off towards the ocean.

"You alright Jilrik?" Another man said as he extended a hand for the frightened man to grab.

Jilrik took the hand with gratitude and was brought to his feet. "It's a sad thing to see the hero of the country like this." Jilrik said with a frown on his face.

"He may be angry but I still believe that he would never harm the people he's worked so hard to protect." The second man said. "I still remember the day he arrived in the country and wiped out those pirates."

"Yea but fighting is in his nature, the marines are going to bring peace, I just hope he doesn't act too brashly…"

On the Marine Ship

"Island Spotted!" A lookout from the lead ship called out for all to hear.

"Bout time, someone go wake up Mr. Kastun, he needs some time to prepare." Another Marine responded on the lead ship.

"Yes, Ensign Sir!" A low ranked marine responded with a salute before walking towards the main cabin with a stiff, slightly nervous posture. He knocked a couple of times and entered to wake up the official.

"What's with that last ship?" A slack marine at the edge of the ship asked the marine next to him about the ship following them which was more a one man vessel than a full sized ship.

The second marine's glance darkened as he began to speak quietly "What do you mean? You haven't heard? One of the Enforcer's Four is on that ship." The marine said, trying his hardest to not glance at the ship himself.

The first marine suddenly lost his balance in shock at the second's response. "W-why would someone like him be here?"

"Word is that pirate activity has gone up drastically since the war, he's here to protect Katsun so that he can meet this country's ki-" The second marine began.

"Hey you two, quit slacking!" The Ensign yelled "We are docking!"

Several minutes later

A wall of Marines now marched down the docks. "Hey look at that guy!" A marine called out "Do you think he is from the Castle and sent here to guide us?

"Sorus get back here, what are you doing!" A man called out from the start of the docks.

Sorus ignored him and kept walking towards the wall of marines.

"Halt!" The ensign commanded Sorus, Sorus stopped and made eye contanct with the man. "What is your business here? Are you from the castle?"

Sorus thought for a moment and decided to keep walking forward towards the wall of marines, he could sense discomfort among the men as a few of them shuffled uncomfortably.

"I said state your business!" The ensign repeated as he raised his weapon, there was now only a couple meters between the two. "Are you here to guide us?"

Sorus stopped again "I guess I could be your guide, but I would recommend not heading towards the castle." He said with a smile.

"Then where would you suggest we go?" the officer responded, lowering his weapon slightly.

"Off this Island would be best…" Sorus responded as he took a couple steps closer.

"Nonsense we have business with the king." The ensign responded, offended as he began to bring his gun back up but he was too slow as Sorus sent him flying with a rising uppercut.

"I told you to GET OUT!" Sorus yelled, the veins in his eyes blood red once more. 

"Get him!" The marines yelled as they stumbled around on the narrow docks, confused. "Where is he? Another marine responded in rage.

Two marines splashed into the water as Sorus climbed onto the docks from the left side, hair drenched with sea water. Sorus had a Nasty grin on his face as he eyed the marines . 'There is about 17 left, but where is the official?' Sorus thought to himself as he straightened the soaked towel around his neck that had become lopsided during the short swim. e grHe grabbed the first of the twin double-bladed swords on his back and began to spin it while he waited for the marines.

Four marines let out a war cry and charged in to attack Sorus with swords in hand. Sorus crouched down and spun the blade in his right hand in preparation for the attack. "Solar uppercut!" He shouted as he performed a spinning, jumping attack with his weapon, landing cuts on three of the marines and knocking the fourth's weapon to the ground. Sorus followed through with a jab to the man's stomach with his left arm, causing the man to crumple.

"AHH!" Sorus yelled in pain, he had been shot in the side. "Damn guns…" He muttered as he slid back into the ocean.

"He's gone again! Stay ready!" A marine shouted, but was too late again, the four marksmen were now all cut up and in the water, Sorus was standing in their place.

"I can handle the country's defenses on my own! Get OUT!" He said in fury making the marines shuffle nervously.

"Just what is going on here!" A voice called from the end of the docks. A white haired man in a black suit, top hat and monocle was making his way down the dock now with three marines as his guards.

"No lord Katsun stay back!" A Marine shouted.

"What, why what is going on here and who is that man!"

"You must be the official they were talking about." Sorus said as he cut a marine across the chest and made his way forward a couple of feet.

"That I am!" Katsun responded "What do you want with my soldiers?"

"I want you to leave this island, I can take care of it on my own." Sorus said with a nasty smile.

"I am afraid this island has agreed to join the World Government, we simply cannot agree to your request." Katsun responded as he straightened his hat in a very official manner.

"Is that so?"

"It is!"

Sorus grinned and fell back into the water, disappearing beneath its surface.

"Well that was odd." Katsun said as him and his guards proceeded forward.

"No, Mr. Katsun watch out!" One of the ten remaining marines yelled out a second too late. Sorus was now in the air beside Katsun's party with both swords drawn and the four blades spinning rapidly.

"Prepare for my ultimate attack! Twin Star Cutter!" he yelled as he fell down upon the group.

A large crashing sound erupted as metal met metal. Sorus was now on the ground, knocked down by the impact of a large iron ball with his swords. "What the hell?" Sorus snared as he looked at the direction of the attack, it came from a small marine bout sailing about two hundred meters from the docks. Someone strong was aboard.

"He's down! Get him!" The marines yelled, Katsun was now entrapped in a circle of soldiers and far from sorus's reach as soldiers from the castle and militia joined the marines.

"Damn traitors…" Sorus growled "After all that I have done for you!"

One of the men attempted to respond but was cut off as another iron ball crashed through the docks where Sorus was just moments before, a new splash indicated he was back in the water.

"Is he going to go after Mr. Katsun again?" A marine said with his guard up.

"Doubtful, we have him guarded now, he is not that stupid." A militia leader responded "Now let us guide you to the castle, the King has much to discuss with you, I hope you are not too shaken from Sorus's rampage."

The Ensign and a couple of the marines struggle to their feet. "I will keep protecting Mr. Katsun." The Ensign said noble as he wipe the blood from his face as he turned to the ten soldiers who survived the onslaught, "You guys search for that Sorus bastard! Don't let him off this island!"

"YES SIR!" came a triumphant response from the remaining marines.

Half an Hour Later at the East Docks

"Thump!" Sounded the bottom of the wooden docks as his head collided with the bottom of the wooden docks "Dammit!" he cursed in anger as he rubbed his head. He was now under the City's secondary docks, where his ship was apparently moved to. He had to swim carefully all this way to avoid getting detected by the enemy and was not planning on sticking around for much longer.

An army of footsteps above his head indicated that the Marines knew where to look, but there was too many for a mere ten soldiers. "Are you sure he will show? I don't think all these militia men are nessascary, he just got us last time with his underhanded tactics." A voice echoed through the barnacle covered wooden dock.

"Definitely, though it would be best that you not underestimate him, he was this country's strongest warrior. Even if he did tend to be a bit of an ass." Said a second voice that Sorus recognized immediately, it was the same man that he had punched in the face the day before. 'Damn traitor's he thought to himself as he thought of a plan to get to his ship that was undoubtedly guarded.

"THERE HE IS, BEHIND THE HOUSES!" Sorus yelled from under the docks, the other militia man might have been a local but even Sorus did not know of this air pocket beneath the docks before just moments earlier. Judging by the density of the footsteps, it would be easy to think another soldier or militiaman yelled the warning.

A sudden shift in footsteps suggested that the men had taken the bait, but Sorus was already back underwater and looking for his boat. He found it in mere seconds thanks to the red flames he painted on the side of it in a failed attempt to cover up the embarrassing name "The Cheese grater."

He lifted himself from the water and onto the aft of the boat with ease due to his powerful muscles. The ship was a tiny ship with only enough sleeping room for four people, Sorus only used it when he had to escort the king to another island. It was old, without a figure head and was given to him for free, but he didn't really care because it was the ship that he was most familiar with, he also had changes of clothes, food and water that he would need for a journey.

The first guard was already in the water by the time the other two noticed the intruder. The second barely even raised his weapon before getting cut across the chest and tossed aside. The third and final had just enough time to yell out an alarm before also being thrown into the water, still screaming. "THERE HE IS!" Said a dock full of armed soldiers as the sound of gunfire erupted like a thunderstorm.

"Shit!" Sorus cursed while several bullets tore into his arms and legs, he had to get the anchor up fast. By the time he finally did, two more people had jumped on board the boat in time for its departure. The first was a marine with two swords and the second was the black haired militiaman that he had punched earlier. "Edric!" Sorus snarled as he let loose a nasty smile.

"Turn this ship back around and turn yourself in!" Edric responded, still missing a tooth from the previous day's affair.

"I think I'll pass, I am ditching this weak country!" He responded with a furious voice. Sorus then grabbed his two blades from his back and began to spin them. Edric likewise drew a large claymore to match his burliness.

The marine charged first, but quickly ducked the blow and spun, slashing his opponent across the lower stomach then used a sweeping kick to sweep his legs from under him and knock him into the water.

"Damn You!" Edric growled as he brought his claymore down upon Sorus with all his might. "Crash!" The metal echoed across the rocking boat as Sorus two spinning swords met with Edric's claymore just above his head.

"Ugh!" Sorus gasped as his muscles nearly collapsed from the weight of the strike, Edric's strength was the real deal, and to make matters worse, Sorus had several bullet wounds in his arm to weaken him. 

"You're all talk!" Edric taunted as he followed through with a punch to Sorus's face, sending him crashing to the ground.

"Damn…" Sorus grunted as he spat some blood on the docks, just in time to see Edric swinging down on him with another strike. Chunks of wood flew into the air as the claymore met the main deck, Sorus had just barely rolled out of the way and gotten back to his feet in time for a counterattack.

"Still alive?" Edric asked as he reared back for a horizontal strike.

"Shut your damn mouth, I oughtta cut your tongue out as well!" Sorus snarled as he extended his two arms to either side and began to spin his two-bladed swords rapidly. Sorus then started to move forward slowly.

"Too bad your techniques got no reach!" Edric growled "I'm not like those other fools, I know how to handle your strength!" He said as he unleashed his powerful horizontal attack at Sorus's midsection.

Sorus let out a vicious war cry and launched over the horizontal strike. "Twin Star Cutter!" Sorus Screamed as he expertly crossed his blades without them clashing at all. Sorus stood at the other side of man as he fell into a pool of his own blood. Sorus knelt down next to his adversary with a knife in his left hand. "Told you so…" Sorus said with a grin as he slit the knife across Edric's tongue and threw the tongue into the water, followed by Edric's body.

The boat rocked and creaked among the waves as Mozorella Kingdom disappeared into the distance. "Yo, we gone yet?" A familiar voice asked from underneath the deck.

Sorus's heart jumped 'Oh hell no…' Sorus thought to himself. 'It couldn't be'.

"I think so, we should go up and check… man." A second voice confirmed Sorus's fears as two familiar faces popped out of the trapdoor that led below deck.


	4. Blackroot Pirates Chapter 1

Disclaimer: We do not own One Piece in anyway.

_Leaving Home For an Adventure_

By: KairaKara101

_In the middle of the sea, a ship was floating through a storm. Four figures were standing on the deck. Two of them were female and the other two were male. One of women was holding onto a small bundle tightly. She had blackish-blue hair and silvery-yellow eyes. The man next to her had black maroon hair and golden eyes._

"_Are you sure about this, sister?" The young woman with black hair and brown eyes said strongly. "You won't see her anymore." The other woman nodded._

"_At least this way she has a future. With me she will be unable to live the way she wishes." The woman handed her the bundle. "Take care of her, Lancer, Mana." The woman watched as Mana and Lancer get on their small boat and disappear into the dark storm. She silently had tears flowing down her checks. Her husband hugged her and brought her below deck._

_**Nineteen Years Later**_

It was a cold, windy, autumn day in North Blue. In a little house on the outskirts of the village, a young nineteen year old girl was pounding away at the piece of heated metal. Sweat rolled down the side of her face as she cooled the metal in the water and took a look at it. The girl inspected the blade that she was forging while she turned it in her hands. The blade had a trailing point and was 3mm thick with a gut hook close to the end of the blade. The blade itself was twelve and a half inches long with the addition of the hilt it was a full sixteen and a half inches. She attached a solid metal guard at the twelve and a half mark and wrapped up the handle in leather. At the very end of the hand was a hole small enough for a chain to hook on. She laid it down next to its twin and sighed contently.

There was a knock on the door. The girl looked up at it suspiciously. The knocks became more urgent. She opened it and the village mayor ran inside. The mayor looked at the girl in front of him as she closed the door. She was wearing a blacksmith apron over her gray t-shirt and sweat pants. Her chin length blackish-blue hair was tied up in a bandanna. She had a black glove on her left hand.

"Mayor what is the matter?" Her voice was gentle and there wavy curiosity laced into each word. The mayor was man in his late forties with red hair and grey eyes. He was one of the few that did not shun her after her parents died. He would frequently come over to tell her what was going on.

"Kaiyou, Fire-Fist Ace and Whitebeard have passed away." The mayor said with urgency. She merely sighed and looked at her work. "You shouldn't go. The seas have become even more dangerous. My wife will gladly let you live with us. We owe your parents for all they have done for this village."

"Sir, I've already made up my mind. I will leave to travel the seas." Kaiyou replied sharply. "Plus, I want to see the Grand Line!" Kaiyou suddenly quieted.

"Kaiyou, stay here in the village. We can take care of you here." The mayor said desperately. He was holding onto a piece of paper.

"I don't mean to be rude, but I'm done with living like this. It's already costs too much to live here and I already tried to get a job. The villagers do not like me here. I'll only burden you and your wife." Kaiyou never raised her voice only spoke in a nice quiet tone. The mayor sighed sadly.

"I should have expected as much, however, you would not be a burden on us. You're just as stubborn as your parents. I have something to show you later tonight." The mayor handed her the paper. "Be there with everything you want to bring." After the mayor left, Kaiyou looked at the paper. Her eyes scanned the words.

"What the hell is on the south side of the island?" Kaiyou sighed and worked on her daggers' sheaths. After working for most of the morning, she finally realized that the sun had been shining through the small window. Her stomach growled in protest. Kaiyou giggled and went back to the main part of the house to cook a small lunch. The house started to smell like the herbs she used to make the meal. Her lunch consisted of a warm red spicy soup, and a small bowl of salad. She managed to space out half way through the meal.

"_Mama, what are you cooking? Is it good?" Kaiyou asked from the table. She was reading a book her mother gave her. Her mother was a slim woman. She had black hair and brown gentle eyes. Her mother was wearing a summer dress with strips of green and blue, and an apron over it. _

"_I'm cooking an herb soup, and as for the taste it depends on the eater of course. I personally think it is." Her mother stirred the soup. "Go call your father in so he can wash up for lunch."_

"_Okay mama." Kaiyou hopped off her chair and went toward the forging room. "Papa, mama said to clean up for lunch!" Her father was pounding away on a piece of metal. He was a well-built man with brown hair and hazel eyes. He looked up and smiled._

"_Tell her I'll be there." Kaiyou nodded and ran back to the kitchen to set the table, while her father cleaned up the forging room._

"_Papa said he'll be here in a bit, mama." Her mother nodded as she poured the soup into three bowls and brought out some salad. Kaiyou put the salad on the table with the forks and spoons._

A loud sound of glass breaking broke her from her stupor. She looked at the window that broke. "Seriously again? That was the fifteenth time this month." She stood up and cleaned the mess that was made by the window. She didn't care to patch up the window anymore and went up to her room.

Her room was pretty plain. She pulled out her duffel bag from the dresser. Kaiyou looked at herself in the mirror; she was far from looking her best. "Hmm, I look like I got stuck in a chimney. I guess I better shower at least." She grabbed a random outfit and ran to the bathroom. After getting out she was in a white tank top and navy blue jeans with black high-heeled boots. She pulled out the money from her closet and dropped them in the duffel bag and grabbed all of her valuables and a few pairs of clothes. She rummaged through her closet and found her personalized belt and put it on. She took her old daggers out and laid them on the bed. When she was done with packing her belongings, she took the duffel bag downstairs and went into the forger room. She pulled out a case and put her tools inside their rightful places. Kaiyou attached the chains to her belt and slid the twin daggers into place. She walked back to where her duffel bag sat and stuffed it inside. She was about to open the door when she suddenly remembered. "I almost forgot it. I can't leave that here!" She ran up to her room and popped one of the floorboards up and pulled out a metal ring and stuck it on her left middle finger. She also pulled out a necklace that held a sea-green gem, which she tied around her neck. She ran down the stairs and picked up her duffel bag and looked at the house before departing to the village.

The Village was known as Aki no Fuyu or Winter's Autumn. It was a small village that had everything the people needed. As she entered the village, the villagers started whispering and pushing their children inside their homes. Kaiyou sighed under her breath and walked to the perpetually spiteful merchants who, as usual tried to sell her things at extremely high prices. The village was still celebrating the death of the pirates. She looked for anything that she might need. As the whispering increased, her face scrunched up in annoyance. She decided that she didn't need anything and went toward the location that the mayor told her.

Kaiyou ended up walking along the beach and decided to enjoy her last few moments in peace on the island of her birth. She gently put her duffel bag down and took her boots off. Kaiyou went to the edge of the water and let the cold water wash over her feet. The words from the villagers came back while she was spacing out.

"It's the devil child. Stay away from her." A woman whispered to her friend.

"I saw her once at night, her golden eyes were glowing. Like a demons'." Her friend replied. Kaiyou kicked the water annoyed.

"I'm neither a devil nor a demon." She whispered softly. "It's was an accident." She crouches down along the shore and poked at the crab. "It wasn't my fault, right Mr. Crab?" The crab pinched her finger and she cried out. "Ouch!" She starred at the crab evilly. "I'll kill you and cook you for dinner." The crab ran away from her in fright. Kaiyou sighed sadly. "Even they think I'm at fault…." She looked up and saw the sky turning from red to purple. "I should really get going. It isn't polite to leave the Mayor waiting." Kaiyou picked up her boots, bag, and walked toward the location.

It was a cove, a beautiful cove that took the light of the moon and made the place eerie. The Mayor and his wife were waiting for her. His wife was a beautiful lady, with blonde hair and startling blue eyes. She was in a winter dress and had a scarf. Kaiyou came up in front of them.

"Sir, you said you wanted to show me something? Kaiyou asked with curiosity. The mayor chuckled.

"Yes, your parent's will and last gift to you. They had told me once that they had met on the seas. Come." The mayor and his wife led her to the end of the cove. It was a small midnight blue boat with a cabin. "Your parents use to go to sea for a few days and come back after catching enough fish to last them a month. Rumor has it that your father was a former pirate. That rumor though has never been proven." Kaiyou ran up to the boat and smiled.

"Thank you so much for all you've done for me since my parents died. I really appreciate it." Kaiyou bowed respectfully. The mayor's wife hugged her. She froze at the motion it felt strange to her. The wife then gave her a basket of hot food. She took it with a questioning face.

"I thought you'd like a warm dinner. We've stocked up your boat with food to last until the next island or so. Be careful out there, Kaiyou." The wife said with a sad smile. Kaiyou nodded and went to put it away in the cabin. She came back out.

"I hope to see you two again in the future. I'll be going now!" Kaiyou release the rope and started the small sail out to the sea. She stood and watched as the two slowly turned into the size of an ant. "I'm finally going to get to see the world."

Kaiyou let the wind take her where it wanted. She didn't really worry about where it took her, since she had horrible navigation skills. Kaiyou, however, could understand the weather patterns for a safe trip. She went inside and took out the food and ate slowly at it. She was excited to start an adventure. It was just that she was feeling a little lonely on the sea. Sure she was alone most of the time, but she usually had things to keep her occupied. A beautiful blackish-blue book lay on the table next to the bed. She picked it up as she finished her food. She opened it wanted to see what was in it. To her great disappointment, the book only contained lines. She flipped through it and a piece of paper fell out. Picking it up, she read the content written on the piece of paper.

"My adorable little girl,

If you received this letter that means something has happened to both your mother and I. We're sorry for not being able to see you grow up. If what you told me is true, this book will do you well. Your mother picked it out herself. She always knew that you might need a book or those diaries thing to write down your adventures. Remember that no matter what you do in the future, we'll always be proud and love you.

Love your parents,

Father, Mother."

Kaiyou smiled softly and tucked the letter into the book. Kaiyou stood up and cleaned up her mess and went outside onto the deck. Kaiyou could feel the gentle ocean. She stared into the dark depths and sighed longingly. Kaiyou barely recognized the fact that the air was cold and that it had begun to snow. She only realized it when her teeth started to chatter.

"It's freezing out here! Wait! What the heck I'm I standing out here for?" She laughed softly at her idiocy and walked back inside. Kaiyou took her belt off and hung it on the peg. She then dragged herself over to the bed and fell on top of it. She blew out the candle and wrapped herself up into a little ball on the bed.

_Kaiyou was wearing a light blue t-shirt, white shorts, black tennis shoes, and a gold bracelet. She stood at the front of the small house excited, as she waited for her father to come back from his trip to the market. Depending on how much he sold, she could get some of those sugar cottons or even a chocolate bar. Her mother was laughing softly at her daughter's energy. _

"_Mama, when is papa coming back?" Kaiyou said with excitement while jumping up and down. Her mother smiled gently._

"_He'll be here soon, honey. Just wait for a little longer." Kaiyou looked back out to the road in anticipation. Her father came walking up the road with a blue cotton ball. Kaiyou spotted it and ran up to him. _

"_COTTON BALL! I want." Her father laughed loudly. She pouted and used her puppy eyes. He handed her the stick and watched as she plucked a piece. She stuck one in his mouth, before sticking one into hers. _

The next morning, Kaiyou woke up to a cold, yet sunny day. She jumped out of the bed and rummaged through her duffel bag. "Where did it run off to?" She smiled as she pulled out her navy blue hoodie. "Found you." She slipped it over her head and ran outside the cabin.

The air was crisp and fresh. The sun was already pretty high up in the sky. "I must have slept for a pretty long time if the sun is that high." She smiled at the layer of snow that was on her boat. She started making a few snowballs and a snowman. She put the snowballs next to the snowman pleased. She went back inside and put her belt on. "How could I have forgotten something so important?" She walked out and looked at the faceless snowman. Kaiyou pulled out her dagger and looked at the snowman with a tilt of her head. The next second, the snowman's head was on the deck. She pulled her dagger back by the chain. "Wonder when I'll see an island? It'll suck if I went backwards though…." She shook her head. "No not thinking like that." Kaiyou unhooked the chain and returned the dagger to the sheath. She relaxed in the snow while waiting for an island.

"_Honey, what are you building?" Her mother asked softly. She was dressed in a winter coat with a scarf. Kaiyou was messing in the snow that lay at her feet._

"_I'm making a snowman and then I'm going to make snowballs and have a pile of it next to him. So it looks like he was in a middle of a snowball fight." Kaiyou worked for a few minutes and smiled at her handy work. "How does it look mama?" Her mother laughed._

"_It looks amazing. He definitely looks ready to protect the house." Kaiyou laughed happily at her creation._

"_So he's going to be named… hmmm, Mr. Knight."_

"_How about we let Mr. Knight do his job and the Queen and Princess come inside for some hot chocolate?" Her father said with the door open. Kaiyou nodded and ran inside._

A few hours later the sun had begun to set into the horizon. Kaiyou was cleaning off the snow when she saw a dark speck in the distance. Eager to figure it out, she ran inside and brought out binoculars. As she focused the lens, she realized that she was getting closer to an island. However, as she continued to look at it the more uneasy she felt. "I'm going to check that island out!"

_**Earlier that day: Back on Aki no Fuyu**_

The villagers were enjoying the peaceful morning when they saw the Marine Captain walking down the street. They all quieted and whispered among themselves. The marine captain was giving off an aura of intimidation. He was a very big man. His men were walking behind him in a brisk manner. The marine captain went toward the mayor's office and slammed the door open. The mayor's wife dropped the tea cup that was in her hands in shock at the noise.

"Mr. Mayor, come out here!" The marine captain yelled with annoyance. The mayor came out of the back room with his glasses on.

"Yes, Captain Alevin? Can I help you?" The mayor replied calmly. His wife had quickly disappeared into the back room.

"Where is that bitch?" Captain Alevin yelled. The mayor sighed quietly to himself. Captain Alevin was known for being very rude and for his short temper. "She owes me that money that she stole from my safe." The mayor stood with a firm frown.

"Kaiyou does not steal from the innocent. You must have done something to annoy her." The mayor replied. Captain Alevin grabbed the mayor by the collar.

"Where is that bitch?" The mayor refused to answer the brute. "Answer me, unless you wish to be thrown into jail."

"We heard she set sail to the sea. We saw her walking through the village yesterday with a duffel bag, while heading off towards the south beach." One of the villagers interrupted so that the Captain wouldn't throw the mayor into jail. The Captain frowned and dropped the mayor. The mayor stood up and dusted himself.

"The bitch went to sea? I swear if her mother was a pain in the ass, she'll be a damn tidal wave." The Captain smiled wickedly. "Men, let's move."

"Captain Alevin! You knew Mana?" The mayor asked quickly. The captain turned and smiled.

"Of course I did." He walked over to the mayor and whispered into his ear. "I was the one that saw her last after all." The captain laughed as he left. The mayor stood shocked.

"No it can't be…."

The Captain walked toward the marine base; he had an evil smirk on his face. A chill ran down the Captain's spine. He turned and looked around.

"Captain, is something wrong?" one of the marines asked. The air had suddenly become chilly as they could see their breaths in front of their faces.

"Captain Naglfar, are you having trouble keeping a leash on her?" A ghostly voice echoed through the trees. "She is merely a weak little girl." The Captain's face turned red in anger.

"It was merely what I planned." The Captain heard an airy, chilling laughter vibrate throughout the forest.

"I'm sure it was, Captain." The cold disappeared as quickly as it came. The captain went to his office and sat in his chair.

"That bitch! The whole family is a pain."

_**At Kaiyou's House**_

A figure walked through the front door. He was searching for something. He flips the furniture all over the place looking. He broke the glass plates in his fit of rage. He growled under his breath. He walked up the stairs to the second floor of the house and froze at the picture that hung in the hallway. He traced Kaiyou in the picture. She was around fifteen years old in the picture. Her smile was infectious as he let a smirk slip onto his face. Kaiyou was dressed in a light blue spring dress. He turned his attention to the rooms. He still needed to find it. He ended up destroying the upstairs in frustration. The first wall was broken to show the stairs and her room ended up as mess as the furniture laid in weird positions throughout the room. The man walked back outside with a torch. He let the torch slowly eat at the wood before standing back and watching the house burn into flames, before disappearing into thin air.

_**Somewhere on the North Blue - Kaiyou**_

Kaiyou was sharping her two daggers on the left side of her boat, while waiting to arrive on the shore of the island. She was so into sharping that she almost didn't recognized that she was being yelled at. She looked around her and tried listening again.

"Hey! Is there anyone aboard of this boat?" Kaiyou sheathed her daggers and walked over to the right side and saw an old fisherman. "Well hello there young lady, are you alone on this boat?" Kaiyou looked at the old man and nodded slowly. "I noticed that you're heading toward Laqueus."

"Laqueus?" Kaiyou said softly. The old man looked at her shocked.

"You didn't know that the island you were heading toward was Laqueus?" She nodded again. "It's also known as Trap Island. I heard that the land was recently ravaged by a monster. The towns have been destroyed and millions of people have died. I suggest you travel east to the next island over."

"Why is the island known as Trap Island?" Kaiyou asked with a certain curiosity. The old fisherman looked over to the island and sighed.

"There was once a legend there. The legend spoke of a beast that would come out and feast on the populace that lived there. If you did not wish to be eaten, you would have to give sacrifice to the beast to appease his hunger."

"What would the sacrifice be though?" Kaiyou replied softly. The old fisherman looked away from the island and at her.

"I heard it was young girls. That was the only thing that scared many mothers. It was heart-breaking for the fathers." Kaiyou looked at the fisherman carefully. "The young girls usually never come back. Many of the townspeople have believed that the beast ate the young girls. Men have tried to find the beast, but all ended up in failure."

"Have you lost someone to that beast?" Kaiyou asked bluntly. The fisherman laughed half-heartedly. There was a sad smile on his face.

"You're a very perspective young lady. I did lose someone to the beast. It is a shame, if she was still alive she would be around your age. I couldn't do anything to stop my son from being an idiot. The beast would not be pleased with just one girl. The beast went ahead and destroyed our livestock and our fields along with our homes. We have nothing left." The old fisherman said with regret. "You will still go to that island won't you?" Kaiyou nodded. The fisherman laughed. "I see. I never did introduced myself. I'm Finser."

"I'm Aeris Kaiyou. You can just call me Kaiyou." Finser smiled and nodded.

"Take care of yourself, Ms. Kaiyou. I hope to see you again." Finser waved as he went farther out to sea. Kaiyou sat quietly looking at the island. The sun never really penetrated through the clouds that hung near the island.


	5. Rift Pirates Chapter 1 Part 1

Disclaimer: We do not own One Piece in any way.

Too young to gamble? No Way! The pair lands on Babylon Island!

By: Grandmaster Briz

"Hey Blondie!" a twelve year old Orrahn shouted as he climbed back aboard the moving ship. Orrahn was now slightly taller and his light apple-green hair was now cut an inch above his eyebrows with uneven bangs and a short cut all around. He wore a thick black coat where he kept an abundance of hidden tools and novelty toys. He also had black gloves, matching pants. His skin had also darkened quite a bit since setting back out to sea to such an extent that his skin almost seemed to have an orange tint to it.

"What's up Orrahn?" Brizan asked with only a hint of concern in his voice as he lay down on the couch he had conveniently placed in front of the helm of the ship. Despite being 19, Brizan had little luck with facial hair aside from a scraggly, barely visible blond mustache that he typically sported out of laziness. His golden blond hair was still fairly short but no longer buzzed. His hair was typically fairly messy as he had a hard time caring about combing in his current vagabond lifestyle. He now wore an open, more adventurous charcoal gray coat with a long tail reaching down to his legs with several round notches at its base given to it by its tailor. The coat also had lighter grey fur that lined its collar and arms. The open part of the coat was bound across Brizan's chest and torso with leather straps to prevent it from falling off in combat. Underneath the coat, Brizan wore a slightly exposed, yin-yang tank top with a light gray background. He also had a pair of torn up gray jeans that bagged over his casual gray shoes. His pants and coat were tied together by means of the white sash that Brizan had obtained two years previously. It now holstered a generic cutlass in its left side, and his same pistol on its right. Brizan's skin, while tanner than it used to be, was not nearly as dark as Orrahn's, and he had also grown to about six feet in height.

"The ship's gunna sink blondie!" Orrahn said as he sat on the edge of the ship.

"What is this ship number 15 in two years?" Brizan said with a roll of his eyes in annoyance.

"Yea, mainly due to your crappy navigating, and those bully marines constantly attacking us."

Lieutenant Butterfield must have been very angry after the incident from two years ago to have placed a bounty of 6,000,000 belli on a 17 year old. The newspaper detailing the reason Brizan had gotten the bounty described that Brizan "The Abridged" had recruited "Orange Storm" Jakin and his crew to exact revenge upon the old man who ran the orphanage he had grown up in because he was kicked out for unruly behavior. By the time marines had arrived at the scene, Brizan had already used his powers to kill the kids and the pirates. The marines, who were then desperately searching for survivors had no defense when Brizan boarded the ship, freed "Wildcard", Orrahn and commandeered the vessel.

Brizan could not believe how wrong the story was; it definitely meant that he could never go back since the villagers surely believed the news. Not sure what to do with his life, Brizan became partners with Orrahn as a thief. Though both were clever and strategic, he proved superior in combat and navigation while Orrahn was able to sneak into any place guarded or unguarded and could turn nearly anything into a weapon or tool, which is what earned him the epithet "Wildcard". The two had formed the perfect team and grew greatly in all areas over the past two years under constant attack by marines and bounty hunters.

The two however were not unscathed over the past two years, that slash on Brizan's left peck ended up scarring over and was joined by another identical slash right above it. The pair also lost ships constantly and were forced to steal ships from attackers and towns.

Their current ship they won off a small team bounty hunters was now the 15th ship to be critically damaged since they set off. "Well it seems that Babylon Island is not too far away, maybe we can steal a ship there." Brizan said as he rolled a map back up and pulled out his compass "We should make it there in a couple of hours."

"Yea if we don't crash into a barrier reef." Orrahn said with a roll of his eyes.

"Come on that was a year and half ago, I was still learning to navigate between different islands." Brizan said as he closed his eyes to take a nap, expecting Orrahn to keep them on track now that the course was set.

"Hey!" Orrahn whined, "Hey blondie!"

"What?" Brizan said as he rubbed his eyes.

"Reef- I mean island." Orrahn laughed as he pointed at an island in the distance.

"Oh shut up smart ass." Brizan said to Orrahn's comment about the reef as he sat up and took control of the helm. A spurt of water from the terrible leak below deck slapped the blonde-haired outlaw in the face.

"Babylon Island, yo isn't that the Casino empire?" Orrahn asked with a grin.

Brizan let out a sigh, "Yea it is, but we just a need a ship and then we are going to get outta there." Brizan said as he adjusted the steering slightly. "Say, what do you think about the grand line?" He asked casually.

A dark shadow cast over Orrahn's face as he heard Brizan's words before returning to its normal hyper state moments later "Lots of cool stuff like your pistol and sash in there would be a nice place to continue our business, why do ya ask?"

"We've gotten a lot stronger and have really gone further up the south blue, I think we might be able to handle it soon. Besides, I want to meet Vice-Admiral Strawberry, that's where the Marine Headquarters is ya know?" Brizan said with the ship now only minutes from the island. "Though we would need a more reliable ship.

"It would have to be made from one of the world's hardest woods to survive the beating we give ships blondie."

"Well we are almost there, let's pack our stuff. I don't think I'll be able to bring this couch to this next ship though, a shame I really liked this boat." Brizan said solemnly before heading to the back to grab his stuff which he had already packed in anticipation.

Moments later the two lined up at the port side of the ship, ready to dock. They were now only meters away. "Let's do this blondie!" Orrahn said with excitement as he jumped into the air with his bag over his shoulder. Brizan followed right behind and the two's landing was echoed by a loud "CRASH". When the ship crashed into some rocks and sunk to the bottom of the ocean.

"Its always so sad." Brizan commented as slid on a pair of black sunglasses.

"Whatever reef-man, are you seriously still thinkin' ya can hide your identity with a pair of sunglasses." Orrahn laughed sarcastically.

"Of course, people are pretty stupid Orrahn." Brizan replied as they stepped of the dock and into the town. "Ya know we haven't eaten in a couple of days we should go grab some food."

"Yea let's eat, though whats up with this place yo? So many signs!" Orrahn said he immediately climbed up a billboard advertising a casino and looked over the edge. "THIS PLACE IS HUGE! ESCPECIALLY THIS PINK AND GOLD CASINO OVER THERE!"

Before Orrahn had pointed it out, Brizan had not noticed the buildings at all. They really were huge, casinos and signs littered his field of vision in a whole spectrum of colors. "So this is Babylon City…" He muttered to himself in a very slight awe.

"Hey, I see a crappy old bar down the road, it's made of marble and gold! Let's go blondie!" and with that said, Orrahn jumped to the roof of a nearby building and ran towards the bar.

"How could a bar constructed from marble and gold be a crappy old bar?" Brizan pondered as he wandered through the alley ways in the direction that Orrahn pointed. Moments later he got his answer as he stared up at the golden sign of a small marble and gold building. "R & J's Crappy Old Bar…. how odd…" Brizan said as he read the sign before walking into the bar.

"Hey!" A rough voice said "Does this brat belong to you?"

Brizan looked to the opposite end where Orrahn was being held up by the back of jacket by a rather hairy man with dark red hair and a curly red mustache with a 'R & J's Crappy Old Bar' in gold on his white apron. "Yea he's mine, could ya let him down, he won't cause any more trouble, we just need some food."

Orrahn landed on the ground and stuck his tongue out at the man shortly before being smacked in the back of the head by his partner. Orrahn followed this up by promptly sitting back down at the bar and initiating his pouting mode. The two then ordered their food and waited as the man poured their drinks. "So why does such a nice place have a name like 'R & J's Crappy Old Bar'?" Brizan asked out of pure curiosity.

"Oh we get that all the time, so I'll tell ya!" The man said heartily as he finished pouring the drinks. "I'm Russ or R and J is Jerry, he's the best damn chef on the island! Or he was… until he was forced to leave the island by the law…" The man ended on a solemn note.

"I'm asking about the part with the cra- wait did you say your name was Russ?" Brizan asked now starting to notice the man's striking resemblance to the Russ from his own town, and him being a bar owner made things weirder.

"Why yes it is, why?" Russ said but Brizan paid no attention to his words and lowered his glasses to get a better look at the man... "Wait Brizan?"

Brizan snapped to attention as he was recognized and simultaneously whipped his gun out and pushed his glasses back up his nose. "Told ya the glasses worked" Orrahn also reacted just as fast (or faster) than his partner and smashed Brizan's glass on the table, partly to create a shank and partly because Brizan was right and he wanted revenge. "My glass…" Brizan moaned.

"Woah now, I don't plan on calling the marines, I think you're innocent. Now put your gun down, you're causing a scene." Russ said as he held his hands up in surrender.

Brizan looked around, all eyes were on him, he let out a sigh and put his gun away. "Sorry, did you just tell me you thought I was innocent?"

"Yea, most of Cooperton does, why would you still be wearing Wong's symbol if you were not?" Russ said as he pointed to the yin yang on Brizan's tank top before explaining everything that had happened since Brizan left. "When you were captured, we were all in a uproar and demanded your release, you always helped out in whatever way you could, we knew you would never hurt Wong, he's a monster anyways. Well Butterfield left the ship to try and explain his bullshit story, sounding like he's some sort of gentleman." The man said as he poured himself a beer and took a sip. "Then well you two took the ship and Butterfield blamed us, forcing us to flee the island before reinforcements could arrive…"

About an hour later, the duo was back on the streets of Babylon city "I can't believe all that happened." Brizan muttered to Orrahn.

"Yea, yea, whatever blondie, not my town. Where are we goin' anyways?" Orrahn said, displaying an obvious level of impatience and immaturity.

Brizan let out a sigh, "To the shipyard, Russ gave me directions. We should get a ship and get out of here."

"Come on blondie!" Orrahn whined, "Let's go to the big casino!"

"Nope, besides we are already at the shipyard." Brizan said while he blinked tiredly in front of an archway leading to a maze of wood and muscular men hammering away at the bare frames of a plethora of ships.

The pair had barely made their way through the archway when a loud "Bang!" echoed through the shipyard, causing the chorus of hammers and saws to stop at once. One of the shipwrights was now on the ground, bleeding heavily from a bullet wound. "Vindier!" another shipwright called out for his comrade before he too was sent to the ground following another loud "Bang!". This was when the shipwrights grasped what was going on at last "PIRATES!" one screamed, causing the group to jump off their stations and stampede towards the exit.

"What the hell!" Orrahn exclaimed with his whiny, high pitched voice as he and Brizan dove to opposite sides to avoid being trampled by a bunch of burly, sweaty shipwrights. The two stood up and brushed themselves off as the dust subsided, leaving them to be the only people in sight. "So what do you think that was about?" Orrahn asked his partner.

"No clue, who knew such a tough looking group of people could be such babies." Brizan responded with a grin before returning his expression to a slight frown "Though I swear I heard one of them say pirates…"

"Eh, who cares when we could steal whatever ship we want with no one guarding them." Orrahn said with a huge smile now, "Too bad most of these aren't even close to being done."

"Yea I rather have a ship that would last, especially if we decide to go to the gr-" Brizan started to say before being cut off by a loud "BANG!". This one much closer than the previous two.

"Damn you pirates!" The pair could hear an overly emotional voice say, "What gave you the right to shoot my friends!" The voice cried, Brizan and Orrahn's eyes were now trained on an upcoming intersection of ship building stations, they were just around the corner.

"GET OUTTA OUR WAY!" A gruff voice yelled out in anger as a lanky bald man with a long, thin blue beard and a carpenter's hammer was seemingly kicked onto the intersection. Upon closer inspection the two could see that the man was crying and grabbing at a bullet wound on his right soldier. The man immediately jumped up and charged back at the direction that he had been kicked from only to be brought down by another loud "BANG!"

"They never learn do they?" An exhausted sounding voice said as footsteps became audible.

"Oh shut up Vorance! We just got humiliated back there! What the hell was that monster doing building a ship!" The gruff voice responded in an obviously angry tone.

"Well it was a nice ship…"

"I SAID SHUT UP!"

The voices were getting ever closer and the duo of thieves had nowhere to hide, they were closer to the intersection than the archway out of the building. They were going to be spotted by the pirates for sure. The footsteps came to a stop as a group of six men stood in front of the duo. "That's "Gold star" Bulmago." Brizan muttered to his partner "800,000 belli." The two then burst out in laughter.

"You better watch out." Orrahn snapped back once he had stopped snickering, "This bro's almost got a million belli on his head!"

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU LAUGHING AT!." shouted a large, fat, and hairy man wearing a light brown cowboy hat with a gold star on the front of it. He had bushy blond hair that matched his equally bushy mustache below his nose. Bulmago was wearing an open leather vest with his equally bushy chest hair breaking free of their confines. The man had a gun and a cutlass at his hip just like Brizan.

"It looks like they are laughing at you." said a much taller man with a black cowboy hat and a pair of gold rimmed round eyeglasses. This man shared the voice of the earlier heard Vorance, and he seemed to be the first mate of the crew. He wore a long sleeved black dress shirt and pants with a rifle slung around his back.

"Hey Orrahn, it looks like they are hurt, like someone beat em' up." Brizan said to his partner before turning and realizing that the thief was gone "Damn you and your eagerness to make the first strike." Brizan mumbled to himself as he inspected the group of six pirates which was now all close enough to make out more than just their clothes. Bulmargo had a black eye while the rest of the group, besides Vorance who seemed to have kept his distance, were also bleeding or had bruises on their bodies.

"I ASKED WHAT YOU WERE LAUGHING AT!" Bulmargo yelled in rage as he whipped out his pistol, the rest of his crew following suit save the two who only had swords.

Brizan knew the safe decision was to just say "Nothing" and walk away but despite always thinking things out he was typically incredibaly blunt with his answers, especially when he was confident that he could beat the other person in a fight. "You, you just keep shouting about stupid shit." He responded, his eyes coldly gazing at the crew while his heart began to pump in preparation for a fight.

Bulmargo's eyes suddenly flashed in rage while Brizan braced himself to dive to the ground when a flash and a thud caught the attention of the crew. Orrahn had decided to ambush from above on one of the partially completed trading vessels that towered above them, his weapons of choice? A bucket, a meter long piece of rope and a carpenter's hammer, all of which he most likely found on the ship he was hiding on. Orrahn landed on top of Vorance bucket first, causing him to both be disoriented from the impact as well as blinded from having a bucket on his head. "WHAT THE HELL!" Bulmargo shouted as him and the rest of the crew spotted with his legs wrapped around Vorance's torso while his arms tied up Vorance's arms as well as held down the bucket and held the meter long cut of rope that was strung around Vorance's neck.

"YOU BA-" Bulmargo began before being interrupted by a loud bang! Bulmargo looked down in horror to see blood spreading across his chest, his breath leaving him. He turned around with the little strength he had to see Brizan standing there with his gun held out before falling to the ground, unconscious from surprise.

"You cheap bastard!" One of the crewmen shouted "He could have beaten you if he wasn't turned around!" He continued in utter dismay as he raised his own gun and fired.

Brizan however was too quick and had already initiated a front roll by the time the gun was fired before jumping to his feet and clashing sword to sword with the crewman. "Which is why I shot him and not your weak ass, what did you want me to have a long and drawn out fight with the leader when I could just beat him there?" Brizan joked playfully as he casually sidestepped a slash by his opponent while a second swordsman jumped in to team on Brizan.

Vorance too fell to the ground as he ran out of air to breath. "Aww man, I thought the dude would panic and shoot his allies or something." Orrahn whined as he rolled forward with rope in one hand and hammer in the other. "Now I gotta fight these adult's on my own…" he continued. Orrahn may have been young and weak but he was a good fighter because he knew his limitations so well and used his cunning and lightning reflexes to make up for it. He earned the nickname "Wildcard" for this reason alone because that's what he was, as unpredictable as a wildcard in battle.

"Damn you, ya little punk!" A pirate yelled as he ran in with a sword, while a second put away his pistol and brought his sword out, holding it at the ready.

Orrahn smiled and rolled between the first pirate's legs as he attacked with a low horizontal slice. "Missed me!" Orrahn grinned, triggering his opponent's rage. Who roared, spun and struck downward with all his might. Orrahn easily sidestepped the attack and grabbed the rope in both of his hands. The thief then jumped into the air and slung it around the back of the pirate's neck, using the loop as leverage to elevate himself to eye level with his opponent. "I feel sorry for ya man, this is gunna hurt like crazy." He grinned as he grabbed the carpenter's hammer and shoved the forked prongs on the back of it up each of the pirates nostrils.

The pirate howled in pain, but Orrahn's assault was not over yet. The thief switched his grip on the rope so he had one end in each hand again and slid the rope up. By this point the pirate was bent over, attempting to get the hammer out of his nose, but it was too late. Orrahn slid the rope off the top of his opponent's head and caught the hammer's handle on the way down. Orrahn smiled as he grabbed both ends in one hand again and used the momentum to swing himself between his opponent's legs, bringing him to the ground nose first.

Brizan, upon seeing that Orrahn brought down his first opponent in under ten seconds, decided that it was time to get serious. He casually parried a downward slash from one of his opponents and did a casual side step, allowing him to get out from under the enemy pirate's blade. "I should probably come up with a name for this attack, but I don't really feel like it." Brizan said in a bored tone as he slipped his blade back, causing the enemy to continue his swing and stumble forward, giving Brizan an opening to smack the bottom of his cutlass's hilt into the back of the pirate's head, knocking him unconscious.

"How the hell are we losing two fights in one day!" Brizan's only remaining opponent growled as he rushed forward to attack the blond haired pirate.

"Wait we aren't the only ones? I thought we were special." Brizan said sleepily as he sheathed his sword and jumped back to avoid the most recent attack. "Eh, I don't feel like using my sword anymore." He said as he got into his unique Winter Mantis pose.

Orrahn on the other hand was taunting and luring his final opponent closer and closer to the front of a half completed ship. The pirate paused with his continued assault and gasped for breath, Orrahn just had too much energy for him. "Come on dude, don't give on me now!" He said with a bright grin on his face while he circled around the pirate and waved around his only remaining weapon, the meter of rope that he had already used to take out two of his opponents.

"Damn it!" the pirate growled as he sliced at the kid thief, stumbling forward a bit as his exhaustion caught up to him. Orrahn did not let this opportunity slip by, he nimbly rolled between his opponents legs and tied one end of the rope around his ankle and the other to the top of the dropped anchor of the half completed ship. "The hell?" The pirate stammered as he crouched to untie the knot but it was too late as he was swept off his feet, the anchor had begun to rise.

Orrahn grunted as he used all the strength in his body to crank the anchor on top of the ship. Thankfully Orrahn was renowned for his lightning speed and was able to climb up aboard the ship so quickly. "YOU CHEAP BASTARD!" He could hear the pirate yell as he was raised off the ground by his ankle.

"Oh well!" Orrahn shrugged as he jumped off the ship and turned to see how Brizan was doing. "HURRY UP BLONDIE!"

Brizan saw that Orrahn had already finished his fight and began to feel rushed. "Damn dude, let me do things at me own pace!" He called back as he sidestepped another slice from his opponent.

"BLONDIE BLONDIE BLONDIE BLONDIE!" Orrahn screamed back to annoy Brizan, which was the only way to get him to do anything in a timely manner.

Brizan rolled his eyes "fine" he mumbled as he waited for his opponent to strike again. The pirate let out a grunt and attacked with a quick horizontal slice, but Brizan had predicted this. The blond pirate already had his left foot raised by the time the enemy had initiated his strike, allowing him the opportunity to stomp down on the moving blade.

"Shit!" the pirate growled as he tried to remove the sword in anger but to no avail. Brizan had already made his move and lunged forward, knocking the pirate out with a quick blow to the neck.

"Hey Orrahn, how do you think these guy's got beat up? They said something about a monster." Brizan said feeling slightly tense, he was perfectly confident in fighting smaller bounty heads but a monster made him feel a bit anxious.

"Whatchya talkin' bout' blondie? You could probably beat everyone on this island, you didn't even come close to having to use your fruit in that last fight." Orrahn said with a big grin on his face as they turned the corner that the pirates had emerged from earlier. "What I do remember them saying was that the monster was building a nice ship. " He grinned wider "A nice ship we could steal!"

"Oh there you go again, I don't really like stealing from hardworking, innocent people." Brizan said nobly, he was quite the confusing person. He had no qualms fighting and stealing from bounty heads and did not care how low he went, but when it came to the innocent, he would typically do no such things.

"Oh whatever blondie!" Orrahn grinned before running ahead like his usual, hyper self.

"Would you calm down for one moment you hyper little bra-" Brizan began before seeing that Orrahn was frozen in his tracks at the right turn ahead of him "Orrahn?"

"Wow blondie you might want to get up here, you might change your mind." Orrahn said while smiling broadly.

Brizan did a slight jog to catch up with his teammate, "What is i-" Brizan began before being lost in amazement. "Wow, I wouldn't mind stealing that." Brizan said in complete awe.

Being built right next to the water was a small ship, a Fluyt, and it was by far the most beautiful ship he had ever seen. A Fluyt was a speedy ship that could be used for carrying important cargo, important people, and it could even stand its own in battle. It would be the perfect ship for a pair of thieves, despite being able to hold up to twelve people. This particular Fluyt, however, looked like it would be able to go anywhere in the world. All the wood was perfectly cut and placed to allow maximum durability, though a few spaces were still empty because the ship was not complete, but this ship would be able to make a long trip no problem. The ship even had several state-of-the-art South Blue cannons on each side.

The color scheme of the ship just added to the ship's beauty. The majority of it was beautifully painted a midnight blue that sparkled just like an actual night sky. The wood that made up the top rim of the ship, however, was painted a shining silver that shone like the moon. "Wow blondie, what do you think the figurehead of the ship is gonna be? It's just a silver neck right now!" Orrahn said with excitement as he ran towards the ship, Brizan following behind, not letting Orrahn go off on his own to do something stupid.

"Dunno." Brizan said as the two stopped running, allowing Brizan to pant for air. "Looks like a weasel neck if you ask me." Brizan said rather bluntly.

"Ohh it will be a silver weasel indeed!" Said a slightly cheerful voice behind the pair. Brizan's eyes widened, he had not heard anybody coming, yet suddenly a massive shadow was cast in front of him. "I am glad you appreciate _The Moon Goddess_, she is my greatest work." The voice said as Brizan turned to face the stylish grinning giant towering above the pair at around sixteen feet tall.

"A whale! A whale!" Orrahn danced around the "monster" with a huge grin on his face.

'Stealing this is gonna be tricky' Brizan thought to himself as he continued to gape.

(To be continued…)

A/N:

I'd just like to thank everyone who reviewed our story so far, we definitely plan to keep writing for a long time to come!


	6. Rift Pirates Chapter 1 Part 2

Disclaimer: We do not own One Piece in any way

Have You Ever Seen a Manta Ray do Muay Thai? I Guess You Haven't Read this Chapter Yet!

"Eh… I fold." Brizan said with a yawn as he placed his "Nine of Hearts" and "Ten of Clubs" face down on the table and pushed them forwards.

"You fold immediately again!" Said the youthful, charismatic merchant in burgundy colored silk clothing who was sitting next to him. The merchant was a bright-eyed young man named Koji who had a dream to make his products known all around the world. He had silky black hair tied back into a noble ponytail and a long, thin goatee going from about three centimeters below his lip to about six centimeters below his chin.

"Ah, let the boy do as he pleases!" Said the man across from them, "If he's not feeling the luck, then he's not feeling the luck! " The man continued with a huge grin on his face. He was the only one at the table that had not revealed his name upon sitting down. To make things more mysterious, he had his eyes covered with round, shaded, steam punk engineer style goggles that had a silver frame. He was slightly taller than Brizan and wore a dark gray musketeer hat with a light blue feather as well as light blue felt on the rim of the hat to cover his just above shoulder length curly orange hair. The man also had a Van Dyke mustache and beard combo, though he kept his mustache rather thin with the middle shaved to separate the mustache into two halves with a chin strip beard to go with it. On the rest of his body he had matching silver and light blue silk clothing with a long sleeved white shirt underneath and a black, elegant silk cape on top. This man was very easy to be noticed for one who kept his identity a secret.

"I think I will fold as well!" said a woman with beautiful black hair and a sunshine yellow dress. Brizan believed that she said her name was Kalmina and was from a country in the Grand line. 'Hmm, I should ask her about the place if she really is from there.' Brizan said, still juggling the idea of venturing to the grand line in his head.

"Well I will raise you 10,000!" Said the next man who could hardly keep his name a secret. Brizan was surprised they let the notorious "Gunblade" Hexxon with a 16,000,000 bounty into the casino, granted they did take his famed gunblade from him at the entrance to the _Euphrates_ _Casino_. 'I guess they are used to having dangerous people in the _Euphrates' _Brizan thought to himself, _'_but still Hexxon is something else, he has to be one of the top ten bounty heads in the south blue!' he continued to think not noticing he was staring at the man "What the hell are you looking at!" Hexxon growled as he slammed his hands on the table. He was an extremely tall man who stood at about 10 feet in height. The man wore a black tricorne hat and an open, black seafarer's jacket with gold trim to show off his muscular body. He also wore matching black pants and boots. In terms of hair, Hexxon kept his brown hair shaved at the top, but had a long, triangular beard that started with his sideburns and mustache, then trailed down to his stomach.

"Oh nothing, just spaced out a bit." Brizan said apologetically as he longed for the weapons that were no doubt stored in the safe with the famed gunblade.

"Ah leave the poor kid alone" Said the old noble Vindlewelt from the Komwat country. He was an old man with a carefully trimmed silver beard and elegant silk green clothes.

Behind him stood Bert, the sixteen foot tall Manta Ray Fishman he had met earlier. 'Why did things have to be so complicated to steal just one ship…' Brizan thought to himself as he flash backed to a couple of hours earlier.

"_A whale, a whale!" Orrahn echoed as he danced around the newly arrived behemoth._

_The "man" stood at about sixteen feet tall and had dark turquoise skin. His head, from what Brizan could see through the glare, was large enough to block out the majority of the sun. The man had rather pronounced jaw and chin covered in dark blue stubble. On top of his head he had long, dark blue dreadlocks that reached all the way down to his shoulders with a fluffy, white and black tiger striped bowler hat sitting on top of them. He also wore a pair of slick, black sunglasses with navy blue lenses. To top all of this off he wore a large diamond stud in each ear and had a broad grin going from cheek to cheek._

_The rest of the man's body made up the remaining fourteen and a half feet and had to weigh at least two tons in pure bulk. Brizan had to hold back a laugh at the pure ridiculousness of the man's outfit. He wore a white suit and dress pants, but they were far from plain. His suit was black and white checkered on the right side and solid white on the left side. His pants were covered in parallel black lines going down the pants vertically. His suit was only buttoned at the midway point and down to reveal a short white tie with black polka dots. Underneath all that he wore a bright, sunshine yellow long sleeved dress shirt to top it all off. He also had a pair of white dress shoes and two ring covered hands._

"_Ohh, you're a lively one aren't you?" The giant man asked the thief who continued to dance around him excitedly while the giant batted at him gently with huge webbed hands._

_Brizan had never seen one before, but upon closer inspection he could see that the rings on his fingers were actually piercings, since it was impossible to wear rings on webbed hands. Brizan was almost certain now as he glanced up at the giant's neck to see what he was looking for, there were gill slits running down each side of his massive neck as it bulked out towards his shoulders before being covered by the collar of his dress shirt. His suspicions were confirmed. "You're a fishman aren't you?" Brizan asked, he had only heard of fishman a couple of times from travelers visiting the island, but they were usually over dramatized to the point that Brizan doubted that they even existed._

"_Why yes I am, my little friend!" The Fishman said, still grinning broadly with his flat teeth. "A manta ray fishman in fact!" He continued enthusiastically as he raised his arms. He had a thin webbing the same color as his skin that ran from his armpit down to the side of his elbow on his arms and connecting to just below his ribcage on his body to create two massive triangular fins. "Hi, my name is Bert and I'm from the underwater South Blue village of Yortin. The Village gang of Fishmen killed my Catfish fishman brother, Schimar who was our greatest carpenter, so I created a style of Muay Thai and beat them up. Now I live my life as a bodyguard and a shipwright!" Bert said as he enthusiastically spilled his life story and extended his massive webbed hand for Brizan to shake. _

_Brizan reached forward hesitantly, not quite sure of what he just heard and shook the fishman's hand; he was surprised how gentle the man's grip was. "The name is Brizan, I'm from cooperton, that is a fine ship you built." Bizan said with a slight smile as he looked to see that Orrahn was still dancing around the fishman yelling "Whalebert, its Whalebert!" in his annoyingly high pitched voice. "And that is Orrahn, he's annoying."_

"_Ohh, I'll just ignore him and let him have his fun." Bert said with a smile as he walked towards the ship. "And thank you, I have been building it for the Noble I have been guarding." Bert said as the noise died down since Orrahn stopped his chanting. "Just don't try to steal it or attack me to take it or you'll end up like those punks earlier." Bert laughed heartily as he glanced at his ship. "Not that it would have done them any good, I'm not done building it. The ship would have sunk as soon as it hit the water!" Bert Laughed some more as he pressed his hand up against it. "It should be done in a couple of hours though!" Bert said with a proud smile as Orrahn recommenced his chanting._

"_Oh so you are who the pirates were fighting." Brizan said, not hiding the unsurprised tone in his voice at all. "We had to finish them off on our way out here, which ended up being the wrong way by the way."_

"_Ah so you are strong then!" Bert said with a smile before asking the follow up question "So where were you trying to go?"_

"_To that giant pink casino." Brizan lied with a hardly convincing tone._

"_Yea the casino, the casino!" Orrahn echoed as jumped back to Brizan's side, not tired in the slightest._

"_Ohh, then let me tell you how to get there…._

'So all we had to do was kill a couple of hours and then go steal the ship, but that damn Bert ended up finishing his work in an hour and a half and came back to the casino to guard his employer. If only I wasn't so afraid of losing money I'd just throw it all down and get out of here.' Brizan thought to himself as he took a quick glance around the room for Orrahn, he was nowhere to be found.

"Bettohohohoho" The mustachioed stranger laughed "Pocket Aces! Looks like I win again! Bettohohohoho!" He laughed heartily as he raked the chips towards him for the third time in a row.

"Damn cheater…" Hexxon growled as he glared at the stranger in a look of pure hate as he grabbed the deck and began to shuffle. "They better hurry up…" He mumbled under his angered breath.

"Don't you try anything, you savage!" Vindlewelt said as Bert stepped forward in cue with his usual pleasant grin on his face.

"So much bickering..." Brizan muttered as he looked towards the black jack table, he blinked. Standing behind one of the tables, in the red and black casino uniform, was Orrahn, or at least an Orrahn with a fake, apple green beard.

"Oh better luck next time dude!" Brizan could see Orrahn do as he shuffled the cards expertly in front of all the gamblers.

'What the hell is he doing?' Brizan thought to himself as he looked back at his table.

"Bettohohohohoho, are you even going to look at your cards mate? Or are you just going to fold again, it's your turn!" The mustachioed man said with a grin on his face.

Brizan pushed is cards forward and rested his head on his hand. "Yea I fold, I just wasn't feeling that hand."

"No kidding!" Vindlewelt began as he scratched his delicately trimmed beard. "You didn't even touch them! Have a little faith my dear boy!" He said in utter shock at Brizan's negative attitude.

"Naw, I'm good." Brizan replied as he looked back towards Orrahn's table, he was gone 'he must be plotting something…'

"Bettohohoho!" The mustache man laughed "I think I will fold this time! I am not feeling my draw either!"

"Bout damn time!" Hexxon exclaimed as he pushed some chips forward "I raise 15,000!"

"I'll match that." Vindlewelt echoed.

"Me as well!" Koji said with confidence.

Brizan sighed, Hexxon was getting angry and Orrahn was out of site, if they could just get out now they could go steal _The Moon Goddess_, but Brizan had to get himself wrapped up in this stupid game.

"Is everything alright dear?" Kalmina asked Brizan as Koji Folded while Hexxon and Vindlewelt raised the stakes even higher when the next river card got flipped.

"Yea, but something is bothering me, something I need to know." Brizan said as he slid his hands to his chin in a lazy attempt to support his head above the table.

"What do you need to know?" Kalmina responded, intrigued.

"I just need to know… if you come here often?" He said throwing the classic, cheesy pick up line at the fairly attractive woman before getting distracted by the game just in time to not hear her angry response.

"Screw it! I'm going all in!" he yelled as he slammed his hands on the table three times as if he was tapping some kind of signal.

'Uh-oh' Brizan thought to himself as he looked to Vindlewelt "You better pull a me and fold on this hand." Brizan stated to the noble.

"Nonsense! I am going to match this savage! He stole the money he is about to lose anyways!" Vindlewelt said as a loud trumpet horn echoed through the casino.

'Damn this place is so loud.' Brizan thought to himself as he searched for the source of the sound to no avail.

"You're the one who is going to lose, you conceited bastard!" Hexxon exclaimed as he slammed down his hand containing a king of spades and a King of hearts "Four of a kind!"

"You're wrong!" Vindlewelt chuckled as he lightly placed his cards on the table "Royal Flush!"

"Bettohohohoho!" the stranger echoed "looks like you lose!"

"Now would you please leave the building?" Vindlewelt asked as he leaned forward towards the massive pirate, who was now beat red with anger, and began to rake all of Hexxon's chips towards his own pile.

"TO HELL WITH YOU!" Hexxon roared in fury as he reached into his long beard and whipped out a pistol he had smuggled past the security and placed the gun against Vindlewelt's forehead.

The next couple of seconds passed as if in slow motion as a loud "BANG!" echoed through the casino. Bert was just a hundredth of a second too late as he sent the flying along with Vindlewelt's now limp body as he crashed into it, elbowed Hexxon in the face, and grabbed the gun from his hand. Hexxon flew into the neighboring poker table as a group of much less interesting people jumped up from in surprise. Bert was now pointing the still-smoking gun right at him, his massive wings fully exposed.

"Did you see that?" Brizan could hear people mutter, "That monster fishman just shot his boss and attacked that pirate." One person said.

"Yea he must have snuck it in by tucking it under those wings!" Another repeated.

"And Vindlewelt was such a great man too, he always walked with the commoners of every island he visited, he even spoke against fishman discrimination! Even though that's a rather minor issue in the almost fishman free South Blue!"

The banter continued along those lines, causing Brizan to grimace in disgust. 'How dumb can people be?' Brizan thought to himself as he began to scavenge for chips on the floor and shove them in his pockets.

"YOU SAVAGE BEAST!" Hexxon yelled as he jumped to his feet, only bleeding slightly from his mouth, he truly was a fearsome man. "I saw you shoot him myself!" he continued, playing on the bystander's fickle judgment "I will exact revenge upon you, and take this casino's money as payment!"

"But I-" Bert began before another loud "Bang!" ensued, causing Bert to stop in his tracks before falling to the ground with blood staining the back of his white suit.

Brizan jumped to his feet and looked towards the sound. Four men were now walking towards them and the front of the casino. They formed a diamond pattern with a hulking tan man wearing boxing gloves with two large bags thrown over his shoulders in the back. The man stood at about 12 feet tall and had a curly black afro(more correctly described as a jewfro), a fu-manchu mustache/beard, no shirt and a large tattoo of Hexxon's jolly roger (a skull with the gunblade behind it) on his chest.

'That's "Dirty Fist" Holyfield, the boxing champion of the south blue after "Boxing Champ" Jerry joined the CP6, he must be Hexxon's first mate.' Brizan thought to himself as he eyed the other three who were obviously grunt members of the Gunblade Pirates. The one on Brizan's left had two drawn cutlasses covered in the blood of what Brizan assumed to be security members. The one on the right had a sword in his hands and a trumped shoved in his belt. 'They must have broken into the vault and got their weapons and the casino's money before ambushing the security from behind.' Brizan thought to himself as he looked at the man who was in the front and center to confirm his worst fears. The last pirate was about eight feet tall and held a smoking pistol in one hand and drug a tied up Orrahn with the other. "Orrahn!" Brizan shouted. "What the hell!"

"Oh, that's your friend they got then Abridged?" A voice said causing Brizan to spin around.

"How did you-" Brizan said as he looked into the steam punk goggles of the mystery man from the table.

"Oh calm down, I didn't tell anyone!" He said with a grin as he threw several VERY familiar poker chips into the sack in his hands. "I guess I'll just leave this fight to you then mate!" He said with joy as he patted Brizan on the shoulder and skipped jovially out towards the exit with all of the poker chips at the table in his bag. "I'll just cash these in later after you clean up here, BETTOHOHOHOHOHO!"

"My poker chips…" Brizan moaned.

"Stop right there!" Hexxon shouted in an attempt to halt the stranger "That's my money!" He pleaded to no avail as the stranger jumped about twenty feet into the air and right out the window, causing glass to go everywhere and leaving the security that was making its way from the entrance to the cause of the commotion in absolute awe.

That was a mistake on their part as bullets tore into their back as ten more members of the Gunblade pirates entered the Euphrates.

"Calm down boss!" Holyfield said with an agitated grimace. "We got the money in the vault with no issues thanks to this punk Corduroy is holding, he already knocked out the two guards and broke in for us!"

"Well then shoot the runt and let's go! I'm growing to hate this place!" Hexxon yelled.

"Aye aye captain!" Corduroy said as he moved the gun towards the twelve year old thief.

"Orrahn!" Brizan yelled while he sprinted to the rescue, wishing that he had his weapons.

"Oh no you don't!" The man with the trumpet growled as he and the double cutlass pirate stepped forward to confront him, swords in hand.

Brizan ignored the two and was on the path to run right in between them and at Corduroy, who realized this and fired his gun at Brizan only to miss his head by inches. The two other pirates stepped in closer and raised the weapons above their heads.

"Single Shard Refraction!" He said as his gaze softened and reflections of himself sprouted from his body at forty-five degree angles. The enemy pirates began to initiate their swing while corduroy tried desperately to reload. "Winter Mantis Abstracted Style! Brizan shouted as the real him aimed a kick at Corduroy, the two reflections attached to either side of him simultaneously aiming at the two pirates with swords. "Double Impact Kick!" He yelled, causing his and his reflections' legs began to blur up while they kicked their targets in the stomach. The three people froze momentarily before the kicks' afterimages caught up and sent them flying to the ground.

Kalmina, who was still hiding behind her chair, was the first to speak. "What just happened, I thought the young man was going to die with his friend?" She said, standing up in shock

Brizan was so focused on undoing the ropes on Orrahn's hands while he complained about the length of Brizan's attack names that he didn't notice that his sunglasses fell off his face.

"That's Brizan 'The Abridged'!" Someone muttered in shock. "He has a bounty of 6,000,000!" The man continued.

"What did he just do?" A woman shouted causing everyone in the crowded casino.

Brizan threw the rope to the ground that had once bound Orrahn's hands. "Bout time blondie!" Orrahn grinned as he untied the rope on his ankles in a tiny fraction of the time that Brizan took and jumped towards out to the center of the casino with a grin on his face. "Want to know what just happened?" Orrahn began, "Well let me tell you!" Orrahn said before pausing for dramatic effect.

Everyone in the casino including a Hexxon who had now suddenly gotten a lot closer to Brizan and Orrahn froze in their tracks. "Well tell us!" He demanded.

Orrahn skipped back towards Brizan and shoved a finger in his chest, "HE'S A WIZARD! A WIZARD!" He grinned, "Zehehehehe!" He laughed maniacally and turned back to Hexxon who was slowly beginning to turn red again with anger.

"ENOUGH WITH THE BULLSHIT!" Came an angry voice from behind them. "Dirty Fist" Holyfield now had both of the massive sacks from the vault in one hand and was in the process of a punch with the other, his boxing glove now covered in spikes to reveal the reason for his nickname.

Brizan had no time to react, but luck was on his side in the form of thundering footsteps behind him. "OMEGA FIST!" Said a familiar voice as a ring covered hand punched Holyfield square in the face, knocking him down and causing the bags in his hands to spill cash and confiscated weapons everywhere. Bert was now standing in front of Brizan with his right knee raised and his fists in a Muay Thai Boxing stance. "A true man of class never lets his sunglasses fall off my friend!" Bert said with a grin, his glasses still perfectly on his nose and his tiger-striped bowler hat still perfectly on his head.

Brizan had no time to respond because the pirates at the entrance began their charge, Hexxon was nowhere in sight.

Orrahn reached inside his jacket and pulled out a pair of black goggle before placing them around his head. "Here we go!" he grinned with excitement while he reached into his jacket and pulled out several small bombs with fuses lit from his jacket's zipper. "You better close your eyes, this gas stings!" He said as he threw the bombs to the ground, causing them to immediately emit a green smoke that caused the eyes to sting terribly.

The approaching pirates suddenly froze and moaned in pain, the gas had stopped them in their tracks. "I might as well use my daggers for this!" Orrahn grinned as he drew his only permanent weapons and ran into the gas with his goggles on.

"You damn fish!" Roared Holyfield who was now back on his feet and in his fighting stance. Both of his gloves were now covered in metal spikes and raised towards his face. "Don't you know who I am?"

"Ah, am I allowed to say no?" Bert truthfully asked.

"Damn you to hell!" Holyfield roared "DIRTY LEFT HOOK!" He yelled as he punched Bert in the side of his face. "DIRTY UPPERCUT!" He continued while following through with an uppercut towards Bert's Jaw.

Bert however managed to step back and dodge the uppercut before launching his counter attack. "Omega knee!" He said with his booming voice while he jumped forward and kneed Holyfield square in the stomach.

"Wahahaha! I finally found it!" Brizan heard a voice say as he himself finally found his cutlass and was still looking for his gun. Hexxon was now standing about twenty feet to the left of the fight between boxers with his massive gunblade pointed right at Bert. "Your thick hide can't protect you from this armor piercing round! The Rifle in this blade is the most powerful in the South Blue!" He gloated as he aimed and prepared to squeeze the trigger.

Brizan began to run towards Hexxon, knowing that he would never make it in time but tripped over something before he could make it very far. "Shit!" He yelled as he fell to the ground.

"BANG!" the gun sounded and Brizan looked towards Bert. He had stopped fighting and looked towards Hexxon but was completely unharmed. "DIRTY JAB!" Holyfield yelled as he punched the distracted Bert in the side of the head, knocking him to the ground, style intact.

Hexxon had missed and Brizan could now see why as he got to his feet and picked up his pistol that he had miraculously tripped on despite its size. "Damn I need to load this fast." He muttered as he ran towards Hexxon, loading his own gun at the same time.

"You merchant pest!" Hexxon growled as he backhanded Koji and knocked him to the ground. "How dare you throw off my shot by pushing my arm!" He growled as he pointed the weapon to Koji's throat. "You'll die for that!" Hexxon growled, sword raised.

"Raptor Sword Style!" Brizan yelled as he moved towards Hexxon at full speed.

Hexxon brought his sword down with all his might "Decapitatiooooooooooon!"

"Double Impact PARRY!" Brizan yelled as both his cutlass and its afterimage clashed with the gunblade, causing it to crash into the floor slightly off target. Hexxon's great strength showed as cracks now covered the tile around the impact.

"Falcon Double Shot!" Brizan said as he whipped out his pistol and fired it, shooting a bullet and an afterimage right after one another. Hexxon saw the cheap shot coming and sidestepped it before coming around with his sword and swinging it at Brizan's head. "Woah!" Brizan gasped as he just barely ducked under the strike. "Can't you just take the money and run, I don't feel like fighting." Brizan said with his usual pessimism as he circled his opponent, weapons drawn.

(To Be Continued…)

A/N: So my plans were that this chapter would be divided into two parts, each ten pages single spaced. Turns out that part two took 18 pages single spaced to complete, so I'll add part two in a couple of hours!


	7. Rift Pirates Chapter 1 Part 3

Disclaimer: We do not own One Piece in any way!

Koji May Just Be The Coolest Random Side Character Ever!

Orrahn managed to take out two of the pirates thanks to the gas, but now it was beginning to subside and his opponents could see again. It was weird, normally ten people would be no problem if they were blinded, but these pirates were surprisingly strong. One of the pirates managed to land a kick to Orrahn's stomach and knock him to the ground.

The pirate reared back with his sword in preparation to finish Orrahn off, but was thrown off balance as something hit the back of his head. Kalmina from the poker table had thrown one of her high heels at the back of his head before freezing momentarily in marvel at her moment of bravery to save the kid. "Ah, why did I leave my bodyguards on the ship!" she yelled as she dove under a poker table.

Brizan took this chance as an opportunity to make a cheap shot "Falcon Double Shot: Single Shard Refraction!" he said, causing his gun to reflect at slight angles before firing a shot and an afterimage for each gun. His attack worked somewhat as his shot hit one of his targets square in the back, twice. His others did not work as well; one missed completely, the other hit a pirate in the arm.

"Dammit!" The pirate with the wounded arm growled as the one who got hit in the back fell to the ground.

The pirate spun around just in time to see a gallant merchant kick him in the stomach while screaming spirited "WAAAAAAAAAAA!" causing him to fall back down perfectly with the back of his neck hitting the metal part of a table to knock him unconscious.

One of the six remaining pirates managed to catch Koji mid-air with a massive arm and throw him to the ground in front of him. "Little pest!" He growled before a loud "Bang!" caused him too to fall to the ground with a bullet in the back.

Three mercenaries were now pushing their way through the crowd of the panicking gamblers filing out the building. "Sorry we are late boss!" the middle of the three called out "Don't give us a pay cut!"

"A pay cut?" Koji said incredulously "You guy's should get a damn raise for this."

"Well we got your sword as well boss!" The mercenaries said as they faced off with the six remaining pirates.

"Thanks!" Koji said as he grabbed his jeweled rapier and joined his longsword bearing mercenaries to face off against the pirates.

"HOW THE HELL ARE YOU GUY'S GETTING BEATEN?" Hexxon roared at his men "WHY DIDN'T YOU BRING MORE MEN? I HAVE THE THIRD LARGEST CREW IN THE SOUTH BLUE!" Hexxon roared in fury.

"But, captain, you're the one who said this plan would only require fifteen people! Everyone else is on the ships!" One of the pirates yelled back as he blocked an attack from a mercenary "One of your plans has never gone wrong like th-" he began to say before Orrahn jumped up onto his back, chocking him out with a rattan dice stick from the craps table. The man collapsed as the mercenary he was dueling took the chance to cut his across the chest with his sword.

"Dirty Jab!" Holyfield yelled as he unleashed a powerful jab at Bert who blacked the spiked glove with his left arm causing Holyfield's hand to be stuck.

"Omega Uppercut!" Bert grinned while he unleashed a powerful uppercut that would snap any normal man's neck.

Holyfield was not a normal man; he was a champion and one of the strongest fighters in the south blue. "I am not going to lose to a kickboxing fish and his wizard friend!" Holyfield growled as he hopped back up to his feet.

"Hey!" Bert said in a slightly offended tone "This is Muay Thai and I think Brizan is a devil fruit user!"

"Bullshit!" Hexxon growled as he continued to duel Brizan "I have a bounty of over 15,000,000 belli, meaning I am one of the top five strongest pirates in this ocean, yet I have never seen a devil fruit user. It's just a stupid myth! You are just using petty tricks to deceive us!" Hexxon growled.

"Naw, this ain't trickery, I am a devil fruit user!" Brizan said as he reared back with his cutlass to prepare an attack.

"Then tell me." Hexon growled as he moved to block the incoming attack. "What fruit did you eat!"

Brizan grinned "I'm not that nice" he said as he took a step forward. "Raptor Sword Style: Double Impact Lunge!" he yelled as he lunged forward and sliced at Hexxon.

Hexxon blocked the strike only to have his weapon knocked away by the after image.

"Falcon Cheap Shot!" Brizan said as he followed his attack with a bullet, all of his fruit usage had begun to tire him down too much to use it again so quickly.

Hexxon moved but was not quick enough and took the bullet in his left arm. "You cheap bastard!" Hexxon roared as he swung so hard that both Brizan and his sword were knocked to the ground.

A pirate roared in frustration and swung his sword at Orrahn who sidestepped out of the way and turned to face him. It was now five on five; Orrahn had managed to turn the tables from a hopeless ten on one to a fair fight. The pirate swung down on Orrahn, but the thief simply grinned and dove between his opponent's legs, using the craps stick hook the pirate's ankle and trip him to the ground.

Orrahn didn't let his opponent think and threw one of the tarps that was being used to cover broken slot machines to cover the pirate's head as he stood up. "Lemme go!" Orrahn could hear the man said in a muffled shout.

"Alright!" Orrahn said excitedly. He then seized the opportunity to drive both of his heels into the pirate's lower back, causing him to fall forward a bit. Orrahn then grinned and threw his weight into the air while still holding onto the tarp that covered his opponents back, causing him to begin to fall on his back now. Orrahn did not give him adequate time to do this and swung his weight back down, kicking the back of the pirate's knees then continuing through. The pirate did a flip in the air and landed fully on his face, knocking him out instantly.

Orrahn wasted no time in tripping the man who had Koji pinned against a table due to his superior sword skills. "Thanks!" Koji said as he seized the opportunity to reverse his odds and stabbed the pirate with his rapier. Now five on three, Orrahn doubted that he would have many issues with the remaining opponents.

Brizan was now pinned down without his weapon and had the gun blade pointed at him. "Take this, Nail Shot!" Hexxon yelled as Brizan finally managed to break free and roll away. He was too slow however, and still got about six nails stuck in his left arm. "DECAPITATING SLICE!" Hexxon screamed right after Brizan had gotten back to his feet.

Brizan just barely managed to avoid the slice by lunging forward and doing a counter attack of his own. "Winter Mantis Abstracted Style!" He began as his left leg began to go blurry. "Blizzarding Winds Kick!"

Hexxon saw the kick coming and jumped into the air "Nice try, but I know your tricks." He said as he jumped into the air avoiding both the sweeping kick and its afterimage.

Brizan grinned as Hexxon landed, only to be swept off his feet. "Oops I forgot to say triple impact." He said while taking the opportunity to pick his gun and sword from the ground, as well as remove the nails in his arm.

"You bastard!" Hexxon growled as he got back up to his feet and faced Brizan while rubbing the back of his head. The two men faced each other and began to circle slowly. "I am going to be the king of this new age!"

"New age?" Brizan asked, confused "the pirate age began over twenty years ago!"

Back at the fist fight, Holyfield had managed to get Bert on the defensive with a barrage of punches. With Bert's back now pressed up against the first of a row of three slot machines, Holyfield saw an opportunity for a powerful attack. "MAXIMUM PUNCH!" He yelled as he did his finishing punch with his right arm.

Bert just barely managed to step out of the way in time to avoid the attack. "Wow that was close!" He said after the punch connected with the slot machine, knocking the entire row of three several feet across the room and onto the ground.

"BOhohohoho!" Bert laughed, "Looks like I'm not the only one who has been holding back this whole time, you see, my normal omega punches use about 50-60 percent of my strength, which, since I am a fishman, is quite a lot." Bert said as he cracked his knuckles with a smile. "You see, using too much of my strength puts a lot of strain on these fins that I was born with so I have to hold back!"

"Shut your mouth!" Holyfied growled "Maximum Barrage!" He said as his fists became a blur of punches.

"OMEGA KNEE!" Bert yelled as he jumped straight into the barrage, the momentum of his heavy frame just barely making it through the powerful, spiked punches.

Holyfield gasped for breath as the knee connected with his gut. "How… are…. you…" he began to say through heavy breaths as the blood covered manta ray fishman prepared a follow up attack.

"I got thick skin!" Bert said with a smile as he reared his right arm back "75 Percent: OOOMMEEGAA PUNCH!" He yelled with a booming voice as his fist connected with Holyfield's face, knocking him across the room.

Brizan couldn't believe what he had just heard. The "Great Pirate Whitebeard" had died and said that "One Piece" was real with his final breath. The seas were going to become crazy and if he did want to go to the Grand Line, it would be twice as dangerous as it was the year before.

Honestly, Brizan couldn't care less about the treasure of a dead man he didn't know, but most people with bounties on their head did very much so care. Brizan however was too much of a pessimist 'What a waste of life, all they really get out of it is the opportunity to get chased by the entire marine force by being the most wanted person in the world' Brizan thought to himself as he side stepped another attack.

"Time to get serious!" Hexxon said as he slipped a red shell into his massive gunblade "Blunt Shot." he said as he finished loading his round and prepared a downwards swing. "HEAVEN'S STRIKE!" he yelled with all his might, swinging his sword diagonally down at Brizan. The sword was halfway down when Hexxon pulled the trigger.

Brizan tried to jump back but was not quick enough the tip of the blade managed to cut him across the center of his chest, though not quite enough to go through his bone and pierce his heart. If this was the end of the attack, it would have been fine, but it wasn't, the shell launched out and hit Brizan square in the gut. Thankfully it was not a regular bullet as that would have definitely killed him, but it also would have been impossible to have shot a regular shaped bullet through the gunblade while swinging and still hit its target. The barrel shaped round that his him however, had grooves so that it could follow the half of the blade above it and the half below it like tracks so it would shoot straight from the end of the sword.

However this was not the end of Hexxon's attack, as Brizan fell to his knees, Hexxon knew the fight was his. "TAKE THIS" he roared as he swung the blunt side of the blade back up and hit Brizan in the side of the head, causing him to crumple to the ground. "You're next, you fish!" Hexxon growled as he turned to see that Bert had just beaten his second-in command. The man known as "The Gunblade" raised his weapon to fire it at the fishman.

If the blunt end had hit Brizan's temple he would have been dead, however Brizan was surprisingly lucky today. The attack had hit right above its intended target and probably cracked his skull, but it was alright since he was alive, now all he had to do was lay there and pretend to be dead and he could sneak out later. Brizan was sort of glad he lost, if he beat Hexxon, his name would be even more infamous and harder to clear even if he did meet Master Wong's friend in the marines.

Hexxon loaded an armor piercing round once again and his finger tightened on the trigger.

"BANG!" a gun sounded as the floor next to Hexxon sparked. Brizan was angry, not only did he miss his shot thanks to his heavily bleeding left arm from the nails, but he revealed that he was alive. Brizan was going to have to finish this fight.

"BANG!" came another shot immediately after Brizan's, Hexxon was startled and missed his intended target again. "Why aren't you dead?"

"No clue, I thought you won as well." Brizan said as he got back to his feet, put away his gun and drew his sword with his right arm.

"I won't let some 6,000,000 head beat me! There are rules in this ocean you know?" He said as he turned around slowly and stared at Brizan with a grimace "Anyone under 5,000,000 is garbage, anyone between 5,000,000 and 10,000,000 is just one step above trash, between 10,000,000 and 15,000,000 you may have been good in a weaker sea, 15,000,000 and up, you are great! I AM GREAT!" He roared as he reached into his beard to pull out a new kind of ammo.

Brizan prepared an attack of his own and lowered his sword to his left hip as if he were preparing an upward strike. "Raptor Sword Style!" He said clearly as he began to run at Hexxon.

"Inferno Shot!" Hexxon said as he loaded a giant ball shaped round into his gun and began to run at Brizan.

Brizan jumped to the right before reaching his opponent. "Triple Impact…"

Hexxon lowered his own sword for his own upward strike.

Brizan jumped as he swung upward and the two met to help make up for the massive difference in height.

"DECIMATING STRIKE!" Hexxon roared as his sword became engulfed in flames and began to move the blade upward towards Brizan in a final strike.

Brizan followed suit with his own upward strike "Talon Slicer!" He yelled.

Brizan and Hexxon now stood several feet from each other, blood from the blow he took earlier dripped down the side of Brizan's head.

There was a loud "Clank!" as Brizan's cutlass hit the floor. "Ahh!" he moaned as he grasped his forearm, it was now covered in burns and had a deep gash running down the back of it.

Blood spayed everywhere from "Gunblade" Hexxon's chest, followed by several little "Clanks!" as all of his ammo fell onto the floor, onto the pile of hair that was his massive beard. All three slices had landed beat his attack to the punch. All Brizan got was a bad burn on his arm from racing Hexxon's flaming sword while Hexxon dropped first to his knees, and then to the floor, defeated.

"Hahahahaha" Brizan began to laugh "HAHAHAHAHAHAHA" he continued into a fit of laughter as he fell to the floor. "That was quite the rush!" He said through his laughter, as much as he whined and acted scared he couldn't help but laugh and enjoy the feeling of victory when he actually finished a fight.

"Hey blondie!" Orrahn squeaked as he ran over to Brizan excitedly. "You done?" He asked with a grin, he three remaining pirates were now lying on the ground defeated.

"Brizan-san!" Koji called out as he ran up to Brizan and held out his hand "Are you alright?" He asked

Brizan sheathed his sword and gun and grabbed Koji's hand. "I've been better." He responded as he got back up to his feet. Everyone besides Koji, Orrahn, Kalmina, Brizan and Bert had left the casino when the fights got intense. Now even Koji's guards had gone out ahead of him to wait on him at his ship.

Kalmina was now running over to him while putting her shoe back on. "I must say I am surprised, if anyone at our table was going to turn out to be strong enough to beat someone like Hexxon, I thought it would be the stranger who made off with the chips!" She said with a smile "Anyways thank you, you probably saved us all!"

"Yea, no problem." Brizan said briefly before remembering something he wanted to ask her "Did you say you were from the Grand Line?" He asked

"Why yes I am! I come from the Gourmet City of Pucci!" She responded "It's one of the famous spots in the Grand Line!"

"I have some silverware from there, the kind that adds flavor." Brizan replied, surprised.

"You do?" She asked, surprised someone in south blue would have such a possession "We have tons of cool things involving food at my city."

"Yea, me and Orrahn might go to the Grand Line one day." Brizan responded

"Well if you do make it as far as Pucci, you are free to stay at my family's place, I can't think of any other way to repay you and Orrahn for saving us!" Kalmina said as she gave a quick curtsy and scuttled towards the entrance.

"Thanks!" Brizan said, trying his hardest to sound thankful.

Koji was just about to say something when his mercenaries came back into the casino "We can't get out!" The leader of the three said "The casino is surrounded by marines!"

Everyone in the _Euphrates_ froze as a voice came through the speakers in the casino. "Can everyone inside hear me?" A dreadfully familiar voice asked through the speakers. Brizan and Orrahn made eye contact before the voice continued "This is Captain Butterfield of the 64th Branch of Marines based on Smokey Top Island, under the direct command of the South Blue Marine HQ!" He continued through the speakers "I would like to inform the people inside that we have the place completely surrounded!"

"Oh great…" Brizan groaned, "I'll never get out now."

"Oh that's right, you have a bounty, don't you Brizan-san?" Koji asked

"Yea and he's the one who put it on me, that corrupt bastard…" Brizan continued over Orrahn who was trying to chime in by saying he had a bounty too which everyone had failed to notice so far that day.

The voice came over the speakers once more. "Our intelligence informs me that the following people are inside the casino 'Wildcard' Orrahn with a bounty of 600,000." Orrahn smiled at the mention of his name "As well as his partner Soso Brizan 'The Abridged' with a bounty of 6,000,000." Butterfield's voice continued.

"We also know that the infamous pirate 'Gunblade' Hexxon with a whopping 16,000,000 belli bounty as well as his second-in-command 'Dirty Fist' Holyfield are present in the building along with several other members of their crew are inside the Casino as well and would like to inform you that your ships have been sunk and your crew has been captured." There was a moment where the mostly unconscious Hexxon groaned before Butterfield continued "Surrender now if you know what's best for you"

There was a moment of silence before everyone began to banter at once in an attempt to figure out what to do before Butterfields voice came through the speakers one last time. "It seems I forgot to inform you all of one more dangerous individual. I hear that a monstrous fishman by the name of Bert murdered the noble Vindlewelt. I have a warrant for your arrest as well Bert, so please surrender peacefully; you have five minutes to respond before we storm the place!"

Everyone began to banter again except for Bert whose usual smile had disappeared from his face. "Everyone shut up!" Brizan said as everyone gave him their attention "You guys are innocent and have nothing to fear, just walk out and tell them that both Hexxon and I were knocked out in a duel; me, Orrahn and Bert will find another way out." Koji nodded and walked towards Kalmina and her guards, with any luck they'd be able to convince them of Bert's innocence, but since it was Butterfield that would be asking the questions, Brizan somehow doubted that would happen.

Brizan walked to the back right of the casino with Bert and Orrahn following him. "Hey Bert, you are a carpenter right?"

"Yes I am!" Bert said enthusiastically.

"Would you be able to recognize if any part of the walls were made of weaker material, perhaps weak enough for you to punch through?" Brizan said as he turned back to Bert, only to see he was already doing his task.

"Found some! The front part of the_ Euphrates _is more recent and framed with steel, but it seems that the back of the casino was the original building and is framed with wood, quite a poor job actually! I am surprised it hasn't caved in already!" Bert said obviously enthusiastic at being able to show off his trade as he tapped a wall in the back right corner with his giant hand. "If the pirates had an able carpenter, they could have gotten in a lot easier!"

"So do you think you could break through?" Brizan asked with his usual rudeness.

"Of course!" Bert said with a smile as he reared back "80 Percent: OOOMMEEGAA PUNCH!" Bert roared as his fist shattered through the wall, leaving room for even someone as big as him to exit with relative ease.

Brizan let out a slight smile as he and the other two exited the building, Butterfield would assume that Brizan woke up and broke out while Koji was talking to them, if everything went right he and Kalmina wouldn't be blamed for anything. "Hey Orrahn, should I ask what is in that bag, if it was just our supplies it would be a lot less full." Brizan asked the kid."

"The money from the casino, duh!" Orrahn grinned as he patted the bag excitedly.

"So where are we going?" Bert asked as they walked through the town's alleyways in the dark of what was now the night. Bert frowned after finishing the question, even someone as easy going as Bert would have to be worried about his fate at that point.

"To steal your ship." Brizan replied bluntly.

"We are going to steal it right up Whaley!" Orrahn chimed in with a grin.

"Yea, want to join us?" Brizan asked, now that he was planning to enter the Grand Line, another person wouldn't hurt, especially if Brizan already liked the person.

"You are asking me to steal my own ship that is completely unguarded?" Bert replied with a "Bohohohoho!"

"Yea are you in?" Brizan asked bluntly while leaning to the side in case he would have to make a run for it.

"Yea you guys can sail on _The Moon Goddess_, I couldn't think of anyone still living that I would rather have on it!" Bert replied with a smile, they were a team now.

"Whalebert joined us, Whaley joined us!" Orrahn chanted as he danced around, still full of energy despite the fight.

Brizan ignored the kid and turner to Bert "So tell me… what's up with that snazzy outfit, are you trying to be a pimp or something?"

Bert laughed at his new friend's question "Bohohohoho! No, this is my village's traditional garb! Why do you ask?"

The conversation continued like this all the way back to the shipyard and to _The Moon Goddess_, which was now complete except for the figurehead which was still just a weasel neck. "Go ahead and climb in, you won't be able to once it is in the water!" Bert warned "This shipyard was meant for building, not docking!"

Brizan and Orrahn listened to the Manta Ray Fishman and climbed up the wooden structures that held the ship in place during the building process before jumping onto the deck of the ship. Brizan was so taken aback about how nice the ship was that he almost forgot to ask Bert an important question "But how will you get on?"

"Bohohohoho!" Bert laughed as he placed his hands against the bow of the ship and pushed it down the ramp and into the water with a mighty shove.

Brizan grabbed the wheel for balance as the fluyt ship rocked back and forth from the impact. Brizan looked for Bert, but he was nowhere to be seen.

"I see Whalebert, I see Whalebert!" Orrahn sung as he pointed off the side of the ship.

Brizan had no time to ask Orrahn what he was so excited about at a torrent of water splashed the deck of the ship and the massive fishman landed on it with a "THUD!" before casually waling over to the wheel and turning it away from the island. "So Brizan, could you tell me something?" Bert asked.

"Sure, what is it?" Brizan replied as he pulled his maps out of his bag and began to plot the next course by candle light.

"Which devil fruit did you eat exactly? It seems so diverse!" Bert asked

"Sounds like you have seen devil fruit users before, most people gawk at me." Brizan began "The fruit I ate was the-"

(End of Chapter 1: Babylon Island)

A/N: Well I gotta move in to college so it'll be a few days before I get around to Sorus. Anyways, I will mention "Rage King" Kevin Void for you in the next chapter for Sorus, though he won't appear until chapter 3. Anyways this chapter was hella long, thankfully both Sorus's and the Rift's chapter 2s are short.

Anyways how did everyone enjoy Babylon Island? Reviews would be nice!


	8. Oregano Chapter 2 Part 1

Disclaimer: We do not own One Piece in any way.

Oregano: Finally Out at Sea!

By: peanutbutterlung (Whale)

Morning on the Cherry Maria

Sunlight began to trickle through the blinds hanging from the windows in the sleeping quarters of the Cherry Maria. The light slowly creeped up the bed that Oregano was currently snoozing on and finally made its way upon his shut dark circled eyes. Oregano squinted tightly as a result of this to keep the light out of his delicate eyes as he then began to wake up. Once he came to, he threw off his covers and swung his feet out of bed in one fluid motion. His feet landed on the floor beside his bed with a thump, it was time to start the day.

"Ayee! It's the first full day at sea!" He quietly whispered as he noticed Polen was still asleep in his bed. "I'll let him get a little more sleep." Oregano murmured with a smile as he proceeded into the washroom that connected to the sleeping quarters.

Upon walking in to the room he started off by taking a quick shower that managed to finish waking him up, he then took a towel and quickly rubbed it over his short brown hair and when he removed the towel and looked in the mirror two points of hair stuck out from the rest. These points were cowlicks that he had always had, one on his hair line that stuck off to the left and the other one at the back a ways towards the crown of his head that pointed forward.

As he continued to look in the mirror he also noticed his beard was beginning to get fuller as opposed to being simple scruff. Then after his beard inspection was over he began to brush his teeth and then came back out into the sleeping quarters to put on his clothes.

He looked for his shorts in the dresser next to his bed trying to remember where he put them last night while moving all his items into the ship. His eyes finally caught them, they were olive green and he placed his legs inside the leg holes as he pulled them up. He then grabbed his belt and tightened them tight enough so they would stay on his waist yet loose enough for them to be comfy. He then snagged one of his favorite t-shirts off of its hanger in the closet. The shirt was Kelly green and had a smiling brown bear face on the front with the word 'Bees?' underneath it in 'drippy gooey' red letters. It also had a faded burgundy stripe going across the middle of the shirt behind the bear face to add an extra touch of detail.

Oregano smiled as the soft worn shirt from slid onto his body. The next article of clothing Oregano added was his lucky orange windbreaker that he was spotted hanging on a cabinet door. He grabbed the windbreaker and flipped it over by the sleeves and let it slide down and on to him along his outreached and upright arms. The windbreaker was very baggy and had maroon and teal stripes on the torso and on the sleeves. Oregano then pulled out his sock drawer and yanked his high white socks up his legs and then proceeded to slip his feet into his navy blue and neon green sneakers.

"Whew alright then, I am all ready to go now!" Oregano laughed in delight while wondering what the day had in store for Polen and himself. He then quietly approached the sleeping Koala to wake him up for the exciting day awaiting them. He gently rested his hand on Polen's shoulder and softly rocked him back and forth as he whispered "Come on buddy let's go see what the open sea looks like today! It's a wonderful day outside from the looks of it!"

Polen wasn't caring much at all for this rocking back and forth and when it finally hit him that he was trying to be woken up he opened his eyes and let out a 'Death Stare' that pierced right into Oregano's very soul. "Aghhhhh! Polen what is with that face!" Oregano shrieked as he backed away from the koala in terror. Polen softly sighed in contentment as a slight smirk appeared on his face while he immediately drifted back to sleep.

Oregano shook his head as he couldn't help but laugh at his silly companion who nearly scarred him half to death. "Haha alright pal, come on up to the top deck when you are ready to wake up. I'll fix us some breakfast soon." And with that Oregano left the sleeping quarters, walked through the living area and made it to the steps leading to the upper deck.

He hurried up the stars in excitement and opened up the door to see the beautiful day out at sea that he was waiting for him. He rushed out onto the deck and looked up at the sky in hopes of seeing the sun that had just woke him up earlier, however right as he looked up a raindrop landed right on his face. Then much to his dismay a sudden mass of gray clouds swarmed over the sky and seemed to mock Oregano as they completely blocking out the sun from sight. The clouds immediately let out a downpour of rain and a crash of thunder accompanied Oregano's second shower of the day. Oregano quickly put the hood of his windbreaker up over his head with a flip and let out a sigh. "Of course it just had to rain!"

Although this was a let down to a degree, Oregano wasn't about to let this weather get the best of him. Even if it was incredibly disappointing that he couldn't soak up some sun, the scene before him on the open West Blue made up for everything. The wide open ocean was mesmerizing. He walked over to the side of the Cherry Maria and proceeded to lean up against it with his elbows resting on the edge and his hands holding his head. He couldn't believe how beautiful the sea was. Even if it was raining, the tiny ripples made from the drops landing on the sea made for a soothing sight as the waves swept gently back and forth.

After about twenty minutes of looking out at the sea and messing around on the deck, Oregano noticed the wind was starting to pick up a great deal. He looked up to his sails and saw that they were catching a great deal of the wind. The wind seemed to be coming in at a very nice pace. Oregano knew very little about sailing and navigating, but he knew enough to understand when he should raise the sails in harsh weather and when to take advantage of such a blessing so he decided to leave his sails up and began to sail through the water at a fast rate.

Oregano was now very pleased with the speed they were traveling at now. He wondered when the first island they would see would appear out on the horizon, but figured only time would tell since he had no idea where they were heading. He gave his surroundings one last look-over and nodded his head as he turned to the door leading to the lower level and walked down the steps and out of the rain he had been in for a while. He didn't want to stay out too long in order to prevent himself from getting sick. What a drag that would be to get ill the first day of his adventure.

Once he reached the bottom of the steps he hung up his wet windbreaker and walked over to sit down on the sofa in the living area. He then and decided to pick up the newspaper his brother Dill had been reading yesterday that he brought from his house. As he began to read and skim over the articles in the paper he remembered the article about some 'candy cloud in the sky raining candy' that caught his eye yesterday. It was probably some hoax but Oregano always hoped that these articles held truth. It was the adventure in him that led him to dreaming big about such mysteries and tales. As he scanned for the article about the cloud he quickly put that though on pause once he saw what was on the front page. What it said hit him hard. 'Whitebeard Dead!' were the words written in bold.

Oregano was unaware that a war between the Marines and Whitebeard had even happened. He had been too busy teaching piano lessons every day and working at his father's restaurant in the kitchen for extra beli over the past couple months getting ready for his voyage to even pay attention to world events.

In order to catch up on what had happened he dedicated his time to reading the article to find out just what had happened. After reading he simply shook his head. "Wowie this is blowing my mind big time!" He muttered as he scratched his head. "I really picked an interesting time to enter this wild world of piracy huh?" He laughed.

Then turning the page he saw article titles varying from one named 'Pollution Problem reaches all time high' as he continued to read he learned how this problem was taking place on an island in the the grandline named Baltric Flats.

Oregano turned to the next page once more and saw that it listed local news here in the West Blue. The first article he saw described an island known as Sycamore Isle and how many scientific breakthroughs were occurring there.

The second article described how the Mozorella Kingdom had recently joined up with the World Government.

All of these articles were exceptionally interesting to Oregano and were the perfect early morning read for him on this rainy day as he continued to wait for his silly koala to wake up for breakfast. He was really enjoying getting filled in on world events since he had been so overloaded lately and had really gotten behind.

He then turned the newspaper to the very back page and was hit with incredible anticipation once he saw the article title that he had seen yesterday in the kitchen. It was the article about the 'Mysterious Candy Cloud' word had it that the cloud has been spotted drifting through the skies over West Blue by multiple witnesses. Oregano was intrigued greatly by this news and learned that rumor was that candy was actually falling from this mysterious cloud on islands that it passed over. Oregano now understood why it was labeled 'candy cloud'. The article described how as of now no pictures had been taken of the cloud but more and more sightings were being called in every day about an oddly colored pink cloud drifting through the sky.

Oregano shook his head in disbelief, by now he had convinced himself that this was no hoax, he could just feel it. He began to wonder what a cloud like that could contain and his excitement began to rise. "I am going to find that cloud!" He shouted when he couldn't contain his joy any more. "What an awesome adventure it will be!" he exclaimed.

Suddenly a thud was heard coming from behind him and Oregano whipped his head around to see what it was. When he turned around he watched as Polen slowly strutted out of the sleeping quarters. He was wearing his yellow, green and red tri-colored baseball cap. On the front of the hat the word 'CHAMP' shone in holographic gold letters with a fancy royal blue outline around them. Polen was also wearing his 'Cool Shades' that were much too large for him but he liked them and that was all that mattered to him.

Polen stopped strutting once he saw Oregano was watching him from the sofa and lowered his shades to make eye contact with him. This 'cool' persona lasted for only a couple more seconds after eye contact was made however, for Polen quickly gave up and put his paws to his tummy and let out a weak grunt as he fell to his knees "Ehhhhhhh!" The Koala grunted in hopes of making himself look as pitiful as he possibly could. In his mind he was currently 'dying' of hunger.

Oregano busted up laughing at this sight and rolled off the sofa "Hahaha what is with that act Poleeeeeen!? You are killing me!" He hollered as he gasped for air. Polen was not enjoying the loud mocking of his impeccable acting. He had worked hard to prepare a real, raw and relatable scene to convey his hunger and was now quickly becoming filled with rage. He ran over to where Oregano was laughing and pounced on top of him and began to gnaw and scratch at him wildly.

"Awwwww! Poleeeeeen! I was just kidding! I'll go make us some breakfast right now!" Oregano yelped as the koala continued his attack which eventually turned into a playful wrestling match which ended with both Oregano and Polen smiling and laughing in the end. "Alright Polen that was a pretty good match buddy! Just what we needed before a nice rewarding breakfast! We have to be tough on this wild sea you know?!" Oregano exclaimed as he rubbed Polen's furry head. Polen nodded happily as he pushed his shades back up on his nose and began to do his 'tough guy' impersonations that consisted of him doing ridiculous poses and flexes.

Oregano grinned as he shook his head at how goofy his koala was and then proceeded to the kitchen to fix the two some breakfast. Oregano's father was a masterful chef and had taught Oregano the basics on how to cook food in his very own style. The style was known as Habu-Habu and it consisted of using many herbs and spices to prepare meals. It was because of this that Oregano felt extremely confident in the kitchen and could prepare meals in a relatively quick manner as well. Food supplies were what he valued above all else while shopping back on Plisboro. This was due mostly in part to him not knowing where he was necessarily heading on this adventure so he stocked up enough food for around a month. Plus due to the Habu-Habu style the herbs and spices luckily preserved the food longer than usual.

It wasn't long before Oregano was done with their first breakfast and he called to Polen to let him know. However the little koala did not come running, he was nowhere to be seen. "Hmm did he sneak up on the top deck?" Oregano whispered as he walked up the steps to the upper deck to look around for his koala.

The rain had stopped and the wind wasn't blowing as hard as it had been when he stepped out onto the deck earlier. It was very calm now and it was a very pleasant change indeed. Then remembering he was looking for Polen he let out a call. "Oyeeee Polen! Breakfast is ready!" After this call a grunt came from above Oregano, causing him to peer up at the mast of his ship. Polen was propped up on the Crow's Nest and pointing rapidly to his left. Oregano followed Polen's instructions and much to his amazement he saw land in the distance!

"Polen! Nice eyes!" Oregano shouted as he jumped into the air. He was shocked that they would find an island so soon but he was happy that they did. "Looks like you found your role on the ship eh Polen? I got myself a lookout!" Polen nodded happily as ran circles around the edge of the Crow's Nest with pride at what he had just done.

Oregano let out a belly laugh as he shouted up at him. "Alright get down here Poleeeeeen! Breakfast is ready! We can eat and then we can get ready for the island!" Polen stopped showboating immediately at the mention of food and scurried down the mast of the ship only to then leap down on top of Oregano's head nearly making Oregano topple over.

"Phew! Polen be careful!" Oregano cried as he regained his balance. Then he ran over to the steering wheel turned the rudder towards the landmass out in the distance and smiled. "Wonder what that island is gonna be like?!" He exclaimed as he then headed down the steps with his koala still lazily riding on his head so they could go eat their breakfast before it got cold.

Meanwhile a Den Den Mushi Call is taking place back on Plisboro Cove

"Alright chief your call is being sent to the Marine Base on Oion as you requested!" A flustered Plisboro cove security officer shouted towards the chief as quickly as he could.

"Good!" The chief remarked with a scowl as he picked up the Den Den Mushi beside him waiting for an answer from Oion. After three rings a voice on the other end of the Den Den Mushi could be heard. "You have reached the 119th Marine Branch, may I ask who is calling and what we may do for you?" This comment sounded incredibly rehearsed yet the receptionist was still quite cheerful despite likely repeating this line multiple times a day.

"Ye this is Head Chief Mutton from the Plisboro Cove Security Force, calling to speak with Captain Bleucubber on a matter of piracy." The head chief responded. "Oi certainly chief Mutton I will redirect your call now." The cheerful receptionist responded. A few moments later a very gruff voice picked up the call. "Mutton, what news do you have for me today?" Captain Bleucubber questioned wondering what issue would now be brought to his attention.

Head Chief Mutton cleared his throat as he began to tell Captain Bleucubber of Oregano and the incident last night. After hearing the story that was filled with many exaggerations to persuade the Captain into seeing Oregano as a high threat, Bleucubber responded with an agitated grunt. "You want me to send my men out to catch some punk pirate who just now set out to the sea? That does not sound like an urgent piracy threat to me with all due respect Mutton. Besides, you have a Military Base of your own on Plisboro Cove, what was it now? Base 299 was it?"

Mutton could not take it anymore of this, Oregano had ruined the celebration and he was going to do everything he could do to make him pay. "Captain Bleucubber! Trust me this young pirate will prove dangerous and has no respect for the general public!" Then catching his breath he continued "And yes, we do have Base 299 here… but as I'm sure you know it is far too small to launch its limited resources in catching a rouge pirate. All of its time is dedicated to managing the areas of Plisboro that my Security Force doesn't."

A long pause was heard on the other end of the line until Bleucubber spoke up with a slight bit of annoyance in his voice. "When did this pirate leave and what direction?" Mutton eye's quickly narrowed as he responded. "I have already calculated that he should be approaching Yortori Rise in a couple of hours. He was thrilled that Bleucubber was beginning to give in."

Bleucubber let out a huff. "Yortori Rise huh? That's one of '8-Fold' Remey's frequent stops as of late." Then with a slight laugh Bleucubber continued "Alright Mutton I will send a ship of my men to Yortori Rise to capture this Oregano. Heck, that is if he isn't taken out by that '8-fold' first that is."

Chief Mutton gritted his teeth as a devilish grin spread over his face. "Excellent, you have my many thanks Captain Bleucubber." Bleucubber let out a grunt in response as the transmission ended.

The officers stationed at the Plisboro Cove Security Force could only hang their heads as their chief briskly walked out of his office and passed them all with a grin spread wide across his face.

"Poor Oregano…" One officer mumbled "Already being targeted by the marines." Another chimed in. "Hell and now the guy might run into '8-Fold' right off the bat too!" a third moaned wondering if the boy they watched grow up in town would soon meet his end.

Suddenly a voice rose out from the rest with a boom. "Don't you worry about him for a second!" The voice came from an officer who had the bill of his hat pulled down way over his face. He then lifted it up dramatically to reveal himself. It was Dill. The other officers were shocked.

"Weren't you given the rest of the day off Dill?!" Dill simply laughed as he responded. "I felt it was a little suspicious of the chief to give a half day to anyone so I decided to stay." The officers were amazed. "So you heard the conversation the chief just had with Bleucubber?!" Dill smirked as he replied. "Yep I sure did. He won't be stopped this early, so don't sweat it fellas!"

2 hours later back on the Cherry Maria

Oregano and Polen had by now eaten their breakfast and then went right to fixing up the ship to better fit their needs. They didn't have that much time last night so they made sure to take advantage of this time they had to kill as they got closer and closer to the island they had spotted earlier.

"Phewie alright Polen, looks like we have things looking like a home now!" Oregano exclaimed as his pet koala gave him a weak nod, trying his best to stay awake. Oregano laughed as he scooped up the marsupial and placed him on his shoulder. "I'm gonna go clean my guns on the top deck and keep an eye on the island. I'll find you a nice sunny spot to take a nap in so you can get some rest as well."

With that Oregano grabbed his rifle and pistols from their cases. As he picked the firearms up he realized he should really keep them on him at all times since it was just Polen and himself on the ship alone out in this dangerous ocean. 'You never know what might happen' he thought to himself. Then picking up his cleaning supplies Oregano proceeded to the steps and walked up towards the top deck.

Polen happily sighed as he was carried up the stairs and felt the warm sun begin to hit his marbled beige and grey colored fur when they reached the top deck. Polen was then set down in a nice area at the front of the ship where he had made the nest of branches last night and drifted deep into koala dreamland.

Oregano grinned as he looked out at the sea. The sun was shimmering off the waves before him and the land in the distance was getting closer and closer. So close that he could actually make out distinguishable features like trees and such.

"Oh wow neat! I bet we will be at that island in an hour now!" Oregano whispered to himself as he continued to look over the landmass in the distance. It was wide at the bottom and came up dramatically to raised point at a top. "Wow it really kinda looks like one big mountain!" he laughed as he walked over to a door on the cabin wall besides the door that led to the stairs to the lower deck. It was a simple storage closet and he took out a foldable teal and green striped chair and placed it out in the middle of the deck. He then took out his rifle and his cleaning kit and proceeded to clean his guns as t Cherry Maria moved closer to its destination.

1 Hour later

Oregano had finished cleaning his guns a little while ago and took the remaining time to properly load them with bullets. "There we go!" He exclaimed with pride. "Looking better than they were when I bought them!" He added with a laugh at the cheesy expression he had just made. He then stood up from his foldable chair and walked over to the front of the ship. Before him was the island. It was a very unusual sight because all he saw was a steep cliff of grey rock with a few trees sticking out of the side here and there.

"I guess this isn't the right side to dock at, I'll sail around…" Oregano began to say but was cut off once his eyes noticed two ships off the coast of the steep cliff. "What in the world are they doing there?" He wondered as he held up his rifle and peered through its scope. To his surprise he could now see that they were both pirate ships. After examining the two flags he also realized they ships of two different crews. One flag had what appeared to be a flaming horse with a human skull for a head. The other flag had a skull with the number '8' on its forehead and it was surrounded by eight white squares making a octagon pattern.

"How bizarre is this?" Oregano muttered with curiosity. The ship with the eight squares on the flag was about two times the size of the other one, and with close examination and the fact that Oregano was steadily getting closer to the two ships he noticed a line of many large caves easily reaching one hundred feet in height behind the ships at the base of the steep cliff.

"Wow those are some massive caves back there!" Oregano exclaimed. The closer he got to the scene the sheer size began to hit him more and more. Oregano's awe of the caves ended upon the realization that these pirates he was now getting close to might not be too friendly so he lowered the sails and slowly rode the waves as he waited for the two ships to do something in hopes of giving him a sign of what they were all about. Many shouts could be heard coming from the ships as Oregano steadily approached. Some shouts sounded like they were roaring with laughter, others however sounded like they were filled with terror.

At the Scene of the two unknown pirate ships

"Please trust us we didn't mean to trespass on your territory! Honest!" A voice cried out suddenly from the smaller ship. "Yes yes it was all a misunderstanding!" Another frightened voice added in response to his fellow crew-mate's comment.

"Baiaiaia!" An unusual laugh echoed from the larger ship. "So this is the Burning Stallion Pirates eh? Pitifully begging for mercy before me." The voice the laugh belonged to continued. "The lot of you are captained by Barnaban Nooseclef with a bounty of five million beli... I figured his crew wouldn't be so easy to intimidate."

A desperate reply was then heard from the Burning Stallion ship in reply to the laughing man's comment. "We know when to give up, just let us leave and you will never see us again '8 fold' I can assure you of that." The voice triggered a chain reaction of voices on the ship to mutter the word "Captain!" Fear grew far worse for the Burning Stallion Pirates after seeing their own captain beg in front of their eyes.

"You know normally I would be in a more forgiving mood Captain Barnaban, but word has it that a marine ship has been spotted heading in this direction so I am not too happy right now." Replied the laughing man from before, also known as '8 Fold' Remey.

"Soooo… tell Davy Jones hello for me will ya? Baiaiaia!" he then shouted as he outstretched his hands forward. His hands were pressed together and his fingers were pointed out forward towards the smaller ship. Then slowly separating his hands to reveal his palms to the sky, like one would do when opening a book, a sudden sound resembling shuffling paper could be heard on the scene. It was then quickly followed by the terrified screams of the Burning Stallion Pirates as their ships frame began to splinter and crack.

Back on The Cherry Maria 

Oregano could not believe his eyes. What he had just seen was beyond his imagination.

"Crap, looks like they are serious business here!" Oregano muttered. "Shoot it's our first day as pirates and we get hit with this!" Oregano sighed with a slight hint of humor in his voice. He really had rotten luck and he knew it.

As he continued to watch the area before him however, much to his surprise he saw a small fishing boat sneak around the coast of the island and enter one of the many caves in the cliff. It was very fast and made sure it got out of the area as fast as it could after seeing the action that just took place.

Oregano was very intrigued by this sight but knew that now was not the time to let his curiosity get the best of him so he then ran by the sails and raised them as quickly as he could. Oregano then continued over to the wheel and began to turn and steer the rudder so that they could get the heck out of there. He needed to get Polen and himself out of the sight of the ship with eight squares on its flag and fast. Much to his dismay though, they had already been spotted because the ship was now approaching them at a very fast rate. "Ayeeeeegh! Oregano uttered some kind of guttural noise as he guessed things would probably turn out the same way for him as it had for the horse flagged pirates before him.

So he quickly jumped into action and slung his rifle off his back and quickly took aim at the approaching ship. Too his surprise there was only one man present on the top deck that he could see. He was the helmsman and he had very lanky arms compared to his barrel shaped body. "Alright I guess I'll spook that guy and hope they leave me be!" Oregano lined up his cross hair with the man and then moved his sights slightly over beside him. "Here we go!" he shouted but once he was about to pull the trigger a sudden loud noise threw him off his lack of a target. Oregano was scared to death that he might have actually taken the guy's head off by accident but luckily the bullet didn't turn Oregano into a murderer as it whizzed by the man's ear missing him by inches. The loud noise that had scared Oregano was determined to be feedback coming from a Den Den Mushi on a ship steadily approaching from behind the eight squares ship.

Once the feedback stopped a loud voice echoed "Halt this is Lieutenant Commander Difetto of the Marines!" Oregano was shocked at all the commotion that was around him. However what shocked him the most was the next line the Lieutenant Commander shouted. "We are looking for a young pirate by the name of Oregano. It would appear he has caused a great commotion at Plisboro cove..."

The voice then paused as a slight laugh was heard from the transmission. "Hehehe however I'm sure we can find a rookie like him in no time, as for you '8 Fold' Remey! Looks like your days of hiding around these parts have run out! We won't let a bounty head like you go now that we have you in our sights!"

Then a soft voice whispered from the marine ship while the transmission was still going on. "Excuse me but what about that second ship behind '8 Fold' Lieutenant Commander? By the looks of the reports we have received I am quite certain that is Oreg…" the voice was then shut up by Difetto as he interrupted. "Hush! And prepare for battle!"

Oregano couldn't believe his ears the marines were after him! However these marines seemed much keener on capturing the captain on the ship before him luckily. Suddenly the booms of cannon balls filled the air as Oregano watched the marine ship launch the first attack on Remey and his crew. They were ignoring him completely, little did they know their target really was right in front of them like the whispering voice had tried to tell them.

"Whew I better take advantage of this!" Oregano shouted. Knowing that taking the open sea would prove to be foolish since he knew he couldn't outrun a Marine ship, he decided to take his chances and sail into one of the caves at the bottom of the cliff-face like he saw the fishing boat do earlier. It was worth a shot and he had no time to waste sense the two ships that were both seemingly after him were now busy dealing with each other.

"This is quite the adventure aye Polen?!" Oregano shouted as the Cherry Maria was now heading towards one of caves in the cliff side. After no reply Oregano looked to where he had laid his koala earlier and saw he was still napping. "Goodness! How can you sleep through this excitement?!" He laughed as everything suddenly got darker and cooler around him.

They had now fully entered one of the many caves. "Well thanks Mr. '8 Fold' Remey. I owe you one!" he laughed as the stream of water in the cave pulled the ship further and further into who knows where. "Theses caves have to lead somewhere I guess?! Where else could that fisherman be doing in here?" Oregano muttered. "It will be a good hiding place from the marines if nothing else." He reassured himself hoping that both Remey and Difetto were only focusing on each other.

Meanwhile on Remey's Ship

"Damn Marines!" Captain Remey shouted in anger. "How did we get caught up in this mess? I will make sure whoever that damn Oregano is that made them come to this island pays for this!"

Meanwhile the helmsman Oregano missed by inches was still busy freaking out that he almost got shot. "Ugggg I can't hear out of my left ear! Ah I think my eardrum is bleeding! Shit it hurts! I hate my position! I need better cover out here! I'm out in the open! We need to build a wall or something! I almost died! I can't believe it!" the man kept rambling until he was cut off.

"Andreli shut up! You're talking too much! We have bigger things to worry about now like the Marine ship attacking us you fool!" The helmsman quieted up and quickly ran and got some cannon balls to fire back after hearing this from his fellow crew-mate. "Plus it seems that guy who almost shot you is going to get what's coming to him. He just took the 'The Unforgivable Path'. Poor guy out of all the caves to choose to go into, he picks the one that kills people." The crew-mate continued.

Andreli began to smile goofily as he ran over to grab more cannon balls he shouted. "Excellent that really cheers me up!" Then the voice of Remey roared over his ship "Return fire crew!"

"Aye aye captain!" his crew responded as cannon balls filled the air.

Now in 'The Unforgivable Path'

"We got away!" Oregano shouted as the Cherry Maria was swept along by the current in the cave and Oregano couldn't help but smile at this. This was starting out to be the adventure he was hoping for. He couldn't believe a cave like this could have such a strong current that would pull a ship deeper and deeper into an island at such a speed.

As they continued to coast down the canal a sudden voice cried out causing a great echo to fill the cave. "Heeeeelp meeeeeeeee!" the voice pleaded. It sounded very weak but it nearly scared Oregano and Polen half to death. This loud echo had managed to wake the snoozing koala up and made him desperately run in circles until he decided to pounce on Oregano's face.

"Poleeeeeeeen!" Oregano shouted with a muffled voice due to Polen's fur filling his mouth. He himself was scared of the load echo as well and Polen's body was blocking his sight causing him to panic even more. That shout might have been from a ghost or a monster. Could they have gone into a haunted cave? Or the lair of some demon? Oregano's imagination was getting the best of him so he quickly pried the koala's tightly gripping arms off of his head and moved him over to sit on his shoulder.

"Alright Polen let's calm down for a moment." He whispered to the koala as he caught his breath. "I think I am going to shout back." He muttered as he held up his hand and signaled off with his fingers. "1, 2, 3! Helloooooooo! Where are yoouuuu?!" Oregano shouted, his voice bounced off the walls of the cave and echoed throughout it.

After waiting a couple seconds a voice replied "I am down here!" it wasn't a shout this time, in fact it sounded relatively close. Oregano ran over to the side of his ship to see if he could see anything or anyone. What he saw shocked him. In the water beside his ship a man was casually doing a backstroke and keeping up with them. "What the heck?!" Oregano shouted after seeing this sight before him. Both his and Polen's mouths fell open in amazement.

The swimming man then noticed Oregano and Polen watching him swim from the side of the ship and waved up as he spoke. "Can you throw me a rope or a ladder please? I have experienced a great deal today and my body and soul are both very tired."

Oregano nodded and quickly ran over to the supply closet and grabbed a rope. He threw it down at the man and tied the end he was holding to a hook on the side of the ship used to hold fishing rods in place. Oregano then watched as the rope tightened and the swimmer pulled himself up the rope and out of the water and then hopped onto The Cherry Maria.

"Thank you very much." The man said to Oregano as he then proceeded to sit cross-legged on the deck before Oregano and Polen. The man was in his early forties and wore a black swimmers cap on the top of his head that held back most, but not all of his spiky white hair. The remaining hair stuck out on the sides of his head and at the out the back which resembled flames in how it protruded. For his face he sported a slightly wrinkled forehead and had a few scars here and there on it as well. He had a beard of stubble from not shaving for a couple days and he also had a thin white mustache.

Moving down to his clothes the man wore a simple black button up jacket with many gold medallions on the chest. Underneath the jacket he wore a navy and gray striped v-neck shirt. As for his legs he wore long black corduroy pants and shiny black boots on his feat. He also had two sabers on his waist that were attached to a leather belt.

Oregano looked the man over and let out a laugh. "Sure thing man! What were you doing swimming in this cave anyways?" The man then cleared his throat as he looked down at his crossed legs. "My ship was just sunk and I was sucked into the current of this cave." Oregano jumped up in surprise. "What no way?! You were in the ship that that Remey guy attacked?" The man nodded his head slowly as he replied. "Luckily for me I'm a very good swimmer…" the man paused for a moment then looked up at Oregano.

"The name's Barnaban though... Captain Barnaban Noosecleft of the Burning Stallion Pirates!" the man then exclaimed to Oregano as he then offered his hand for a shake.

"Ohh nice to meet you! I'm Oregano!" Oregano responded as he shook Barnaban's hand. He then pointed to Polen and Oregano continued "This little guy here is my pet…" Oregano quickly stopped seeing Polen's eyes light up with fire at the mention of the 'p' word. "This guy here is my faithful, amazing, lookout! His name is Polen!" Oregano corrected quickly which pleased Polen as the koala slowly gave a nod of approval. He never had cared to be referred to as a pet, he felt he was much too good for a title like that.

Barnaban smiled "It is nice to meet you both!" he said. "Oh and I know that I may be from a different pirate crew and everything but you have my word, I am not a threat to you. Especially since you saved me from swimming down this cave."

Oregano smiled and gave him a thumbs up. "Awesome to hear man!"Then it suddenly hit Barnaban that Oregano had gotten passed Remey so he asked.

"Oregano how did you manage to get past Remey and his crew?" Oregano grinned and scratched the back of his head as he replied. "Well I can thank the Marines for that, they showed up just in time and started a battle with Remey and his crew right as they were in the process of coming to attack me. Oh and speaking of Remey, how the heck did he do what he did to your ship?!"

Barnaban then nodded his head as he spoke. "Oh the Marines huh? I wonder what business they have here? Oh and as for Remey… I will tell you more about him later..." Oregano hesitantly laughed as he answered. "Well to answer your first question, the Marines are after me actually."

Barnaban's eyes widened "After you?! Do you even have a bounty?" Oregano shook his head after hearing this and replied. "Well no, but the Head Security Chief back at my home town apparently alerted them of my presence. He isn't too fond of how I left the island. In fact he sent cannon balls flying towards me as a going away present." Oregano laughed.

Barnaban was very confused at all that he had just heard but decided to just accept everything for now. Oregano then quickly shouted out a question that suddenly jumped in his head. "Oh so what of your crew Captain Barnaban?!"

Barnaban sighed. "Yes I do hope they are all alright. My last order to them was to enter a cave and swim to the central lagoon of this island where the only city on this island is located so that we could all meet up and regroup. "

Oregano nodded as he put his hand to his chin. "Wowie so these caves really do lead somewhere!" Oregano responded as Barnaban nodded back.

"Oh so you have never heard of Yortori Raise huh? Well yes this island is completely void of human life on its outer cliffs as I'm sure you saw. Only a few trees live out there so the outside of this island is relatively dead. The caves at the cliff bottom are what lead to the central lagoon and ultimately Sukini City, the only place humans can live here on Yortori Rise. All the caves on this side of the island flow into the island and reach Sukini, and then in order to leave Sukini City you exit through similar caves on the opposite side. It truly is an interesting island wouldn't you say?"

Oregano nodded. It really was an interesting island from the sound of it, he couldn't wait to see more of it. Then Barnaban laughed "Oh and Oregano, could you tell me which cave we are in now? I couldn't tell which cave I got sucked into because I was under water. There are ten caves that lead into Sukini City. One of them is incredibly dangerous however… Hmm well let me make it easier for you. As long as you didn't happen to choose the third cave from the left we are fine. It should have had a large 'x' painted over it."

Oregano paused for a moment as he though back and tracked through his memories for a moment and it suddenly came back to him. "Ummmm yeah I think that actually is the one I picked…" he muttered innocently.

"WHAAAAT?!" Barnaban shouted. "This is awful news! We are going to die!" Oregano and Polen's eyes began to water hearing this outburst and their souls began to wither away. "Don't say something like that man! You are going to give us heart attacks!" Oregano yelped back at Barnaban.

Barnaban placed his head into his palms and pressed tightly. "Forgive me you two, It's just that only a handful of people have ever survived this path. I honestly don't know why the island locals don't just block it off. I guess they felt a red 'x' is enough to keep ships out… but it didn't seem to work for you two did it?!" Barnaban exclaimed with sorrow heavy on his voice.

Oregano let out a gulp after hearing this and then replied. "Hey! It was the heat of the moment and I was just trying to get away from the two ships that were after my head!" He then scratched Polen's fuzzy head to calm him down as he continued to speak. "Oh and it hasn't been too bad so far, when is it supposed to get scary?" Barnaban was about to reply but a sound of roaring water suddenly caught their attention and its sound flooded the entire area around them.

"I would guess now…" Barnaban muttered.


	9. Oregano Chapter 2 Part 2

Disclaimer: We do not own One Piece in any way.

Oregano: Finally Out at Sea! Part 2  
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By: peanutbutterlung (Whale)

Deep Inside the 'Unforgivable Path'

The sound of rushing water was growing louder and louder as the Cherry Maria was swept along by the now turbulent and bumpy current that had appeared within the 'Unforgiving Path'. Tension was now filling the air at an alarming rate around Oregano, Polen and Barnaban as the unknown drew nearer.

"Ayeee! What the heck is causing the water to make such loud noise?!" Oregano shouted. He couldn't hold it in any longer as he ran up to the front of his ship. He wanted to see if he could find what was making the noise before it caught them by surprise.

The situation at hand was very intense and all, but Oregano couldn't help but grin slightly at the exciting adventure that had fallen before him. His adrenaline was pumping wildly, but his fear was also a prominent emotion inside him, so he was in some ways balanced out. The darkness within the cave was now darker than ever since they had now traveled deeper and deeper down the path. This made seeing anything past one's outstretched hand nearly impossible.

Polen who was currently curled up in a ball and buried himself inside Oregano's shirt and was tightly gripping Oregano's stomach hoping to cut his anxiety a bit. He could only shiver at this terrible situation they had all found themselves in. Oregano began to instinctively pet the koala to try and soothe and relax him the best he could as he desperately scanned the darkness to see anything, however it was to no avail, Oregano had terrible 'dark' vision.

"Barnaban! Do you know anything more about this path that might help us out? Like rumors or something?" Oregano shouted as he gave up looking and returned to the older man who now had his fingers pressed firmly into his forehead.

"I'm afraid there are much too many to name Oregano… and many don't match up well, so believing one story over another gets tricky." Barnaban shook his head slowly as he continued. "However I say we figure things out for ourselves. I'm not going to wait for the terrors of this path to get the best of us! Allow me to find out what our surroundings are! I didn't get the name 'Burning Stallion' for nothing!" Barnaban yelled out with false confidence to cover his fear of what might soon be seen.

Oregano took a deep gulp after hearing what Barnaban had to say and gave a dramatic fist pump into the air. He wondered what Barnaban had up his sleeve and most of all he wondered what they would see before them once the area became visible. The rushing water was closer than ever and if they were going to beat this path they had to become aware of their surroundings.

Barnaban nodded after seeing Oregano signal his agreement. Then in one fluid motion Barnaban pulled out a platinum case that he kept inside jacket pocket. With his other hand he drew one of his sabers out of its sheath and much to Oregano's surprise the blade wasn't a blade at all it was a just a carved piece of wood.

Barnaban then snapped open the case he had pulled out of his pocket and within it were many light green sprouts. Oregano was perplexed at the sight before him but he had no time to ask because Barnaban quickly picked a couple sprouts up and tossed them into his mouth and began to chew on them vigorously. He then held the wooden blade up to his mouth and blew on the end of it.

Immediately following this action Barnaban slashed the wooden sword against the wooden deck of the Cherry Maria and a righteous flame emerged at the end of the carved wooden sword. There were many flicks and sparks making noise from inside the flame as the fire flared out.

"There we go!" Barnaban shouted as he walked over to the front of the ship. Oregano was ecstatic at the sight before him and quickly ran over behind Barnaban. "Whoaaa how the heck did you do that?!" Oregano asked with his curiosity killing him.

"Heh, I am a not only a pirate captain I am also an avid botanist and those sprouts are my very own creation, I call them 'Hell Sprouts' they are incredibly flammable due to very special chemicals that I brought out from inside of them." Barnaban replied as he waved the flame around the front of the ship.

The light the fire was giving off made their surroundings clear. The cave walls were a dark earthy brown color and were very damp. Overhead were a jagged mass of stalactites some reaching close to five yards in length. The light of the flame also reflected off many yellow glowing eyes that were peering down at the ship below them. This proved to be a very spooky sight indeed, but Barnaban aimed the flame down at the water to see what the condition of the current was and if anything could be seen to help them navigate. When looking at the water in the cave it was much rougher than ever before and was now covered completely by a surging froth of foamy sea water.

Now that the fire had been going strong for a while and had kept a constant light around the area, Polen decided he would crawl out of Oregano's shirt. He had seen the light shine through the cloth and felt that things would be safer now that they could all see around them easier. The koala eased his way out the bottom of the shirt and landed on the deck with a thud. He then proceeded to hesitantly crawl up on the front of the ship and looked around at what the fire illuminated.

Barnaban began to shake his head as he muttered. "I have a bad feeling about what is making this current so rough."

Oregano began to scratch his head as he nodded in agreement. "Yeah for sure man, and that noise is really testing my nerves."

Barnaban began chewing the sprouts that were still in his mouth again and let out a whisper so he wouldn't waste too much juice that could be escaping from his open mouth. "Get ready we are about to see a lot more of this cave!" Then taking in a big gulp and holding the carved wooden blade in front of him he let out a mighty blow of air as he shouted "Stampeding Inferno!" The juice from the sprouts that Barnaban blew hit the already existing flame and sent forward a roaring wave of fire!

Oregano stared wide- eyed and had a huge grin spread across his face as he laughed at the wicked technique Barnaban had seemingly pulled out of nowhere. Polen on the other hand was terrified at this display and contemplated using a 'Death Glare' against Barnaban and he even considered pouncing on the man and mauling him but after seeing the fireball he was capable of shooting he decided against it and scurried off to hide behind the mast behind him.

The fireball kept going through the cave for a while and lit everything around it up so that Oregano and Barnaban could see what was in the distance. What they saw made their hearts sink as they both stared in shock at what stood before them in the distance. A massive stalagmite that had a width that easily took up over half the width of the path itself was staring back at them. It was in the middle of the canal and left a tight squeeze of space on either side of it.

"Crap! The 'Unforgivable Path makes its first moveee!" Oregano shouted as he quickly ran back to man the wheel and steer the Cherry Maria so they wouldn't crash into the massive stone blocking their path. "What side are you feeling Barnaban?! I would pick one myself but I don't really have the best of luck!" Oregano yelled to Barnaban hoping for a quick answer.

Barnaban shook his head as he snorted in a similar manner as a horse would as he pressed his fingers to his forehead. "Let's go left Oregano!" He replied back.

"Haha alright you got it!" Oregano yelled in response as he spun the wheel of the ship rapidly to fight the terribly fierce rapids that were inside the canal. The Cherry Maria was fighting the waves as Oregano struggled to press the ship to the left side of the passage. The ship was rocking back and forth like a bucking bronco causing Oregano to tightly grip the wheel in order to stay on his feet. Barnaban was clinching the side of the ship so that he wouldn't slip himself. He was a bit of a rodeo man himself but this rocking wasn't like any horse he had ever ridden.

Polen was terrified at the sight he had seen with the fire and the constant shaking of the ship did not make matters better for him, so he desperately scurried up the ship's mast he was still hiding behind and made his way into the Crow's Nest. It wasn't much but he felt secure in the small compact area up there and his thoughts on the matter were that the higher up he was from the danger the better.

"Whoa this is going to be a tight fit fellas!" Oregano shouted as the Cherry Maria was now heading straight for the slight opening on the left of the massive stalagmite.

Barnaban sternly nodded his head as he watched the gap between the stone and the wall get closer. The current was now faster than ever as water was forced to either side of the stalagmite making the ship bounce viciously on the water.

"Hold on tight!" Oregano hollered when he knew the roughest part should be coming. The Cherry Maria was now rattling about like some sidewinder out in the desert as the front of the ship finally went past the stalagmite. Now the ship was in the tight squeeze between the cave wall and the rocky stalagmite as the rapids whirled from side to side. Oregano desperately tried to steer the ship through this mess but the ship was taking so much of a beating that the wheel began to spin like a propeller which threw Oregano off balance and caused him to slide across the deck of the ship.

"Craaaaaap! Crap! Crap!" Oregano desperately shouted as his body continued to slide towards the side of the ship. He quickly tried to regain his balance and stand up but a new wave hit the ship every time he tried to do so, each time harder than the last.

He continued to slide until he eventually hit the side wall of the Cherry Maria. He reached his hands up to grip the wall and was beginning to pull himself up when out of the corner of his eye he saw a large wave heading back off a ricochet that had splashed off the cave wall. The wave hit the ship hard before he could even react and the impact sent him flying into the air and off the ship into the rapids below.

"Nooooo! Oregano!" Barnaban cried out as he witnessed the event take place before his very eyes. Due to his already firmly placed grip he was prepared for the heavy impact but Oregano was caught off guard and thrown overboard.

Polen heard Barnaban's shout and hesitantly perched his paws on the edge of the crow's nest. He scanned the deck beneath him and much to his dismay could not find his master anywhere. The koala then noticed that the stalagmite they had seen earlier was now behind the ship. They had made it past the stalagmite and the waters were a little calmer so Polen quickly rushed down the mast and onto the deck. He saw Barnaban quickly run over to the opposite side of the ship and look into the water below.

Barnaban then began to shout desperately. "Oregano, Oregano are you there?!" He couldn't see anything in the water below and there wasn't a response heard either, and even if there was the loud rushing water around them could very easily be drowning out the noise.

After hearing Barnaban call to Oregano over the ship Polen began to worry as he then ran over and scurried up Barnaban's back to see what he was looking at. All the koala could see was dark waters as well and things began to click in his mind as his eyes began to tear up.

Barnaban shook his head as he suddenly felt Polen's presence on his shoulder. Barnaban was shocked at what had taken place, it all happened so fast. He reached his hand up to pet the koala's fuzzy head to try and comfort it the best he could but Polen quickly hopped on the outer wall of the ship and desperately ran along the edge to try and see if he could find Oregano in the dark waters below.

Barnaban then realized he was tuning out a sound even louder than the sound the rushing water made flowing around the stalagmite they had just passed. The distraction of trying to find Oregano proved to momentarily distract him, but could only do so for so long."Of course it isn't over is it?" He cried out as he ran over to the wheel in order to brace himself for what this cursed canal had in store for them next.

"Oregano I want to try and save you, but I have to keep your ship, koala and myself safe in order for that to happen. I'm sure you understand." Barnaban muttered as he prepared for a massive fire ball to be shot with one hand while steering with the other. Barnaban was very uneasy as to what might be coming next.

Polen was still busy frantically searching the waters for Oregano as he ran around the wall of the ship. The tears in his eyes made focusing on the waters below him even harder but he continued to try none the less. Desperately squealing out all the while for his best friend, the little koala simply would not give up.

The sound of rushing water was now greater than ever and the heavy pounding echoing off the cave walls was causing Barnaban's eardrums to throb. "What in blazes does this path have in store for us next?" He shouted as he reached inside his jacket for more 'Hell Sprouts", much to his dismay his hand only grasped a couple sprouts leaving his hand more than half empty when he pulled it out. "What a crummy time to run out." He muttered "I just have to hope this batch will be enough."

And with that Barnaban stuffed the sprouts in his mouth and began to chomp down upon them. Juices began to fill his mouth as he held his wooden blade up in front of him. He then took a deep breath in through his nostrils and let out a roar. "Stampeding Inferno" A fireball was then sent flying into the dark cave lighting up the surroundings just like it had before.

In part of Barnaban's mind he hoped that this sudden flare of light would help Oregano possibly get his bearings and make it towards the exit or the ship one. The fireball had now reached out a good distance in front of the Cherry Maria and lit up a darker area in the cave than the rest. It was on the right wall of the cave and the noise was coming directly from it. The fire's light reached it a bit more before it completely extinguished in the darkness but for that brief moment Barnaban knew exactly what he had seen. It was a waterfall.

The current began picking up faster and faster right as Barnaban saw the horrific sight that he was now heading towards. "A waterfall in this cavern?! If we go over that we are as good as done! Our flames will surely be put out!" He shouted as he began to frantically turn the wheel to the left. He knew he had to hug the left wall of the cave tightly so that the ship could make it passed the viscous current the waterfall was making on the opposite side of the canal.

The Cherry Maria was now bobbing all over the place as it fought against the current in the canal. Barnaban desperately tried to navigate the ship to the left side of the cave and as he did this his heart began to ache as he thought about Oregano. That waterfall might be too much to handle… if he hasn't already been bested by this terrible place already.

Then out of the corner of his eye he saw Polen still racing along the ships outer wall moaning and squealing as he tried his best to call out to his master. 'The poor thing.' Barnaban thought as he pressed his fingers into his forehead firmly.

Barnaban quickly became stern though, he did not want his emotions on this situation swaying him. He had to be strong because that was the only way. "A courageous fire is burning in my soul! Do you hear me' Unforgiving Path'? Oregano do you hear me?! Let my fire ignite the same flame in your soul so we can make it out of this place together! Please hear my voice!"

The waves were now stronger than ever but Barnaban had actually managed to make it extremely close to the left wall of the cave. The waterfall was almost directly across the cave from him now. He had high hopes based on his current position that even if the rapids did pull him towards the right that he would still be moving forward enough to escape the pull zone when it mattered the most.

It was a fierce battle between Barnaban and the Cherry Maria against the cruel currents in the 'Unforgiving Path'. It seemed to last for hours for Barnaban but in reality it was no more than a couple of minutes. Suddenly the waves stopped hitting and pulling the boat however and Barnaban could hear the sounds of rushing water behind him. He had finally passed the falls!

Then in the distance to make this news even better he saw light at the end of the cave. He panicked for a mere second and took a quick moment to think as he hoped that this light was not actually him dying and entering the afterlife. Could he have actually been killed back at the waterfall?

Barnaban simply shook his head at how as he realized that he was being too dramatic and watched as the light drew nearer. He walked over to the side of the boat and looked into the water. The light coming from the end of the cave allowed more water to be seen and he desperately hoped to see a swimming Oregano somewhere near the ship. Polen then came running towards him making what seemed like his hundredth lap around the ship as he continued his searched of the waters.

Barnaban reached out his hand to stop the little koala from running anymore. Polen quickly came to a halt as he looked up towards Barnaban. Barnaban slowly shook his head as he rested his hand on the koala's head. He then pointed at the light in the distance and Polen looked up to see. The exit slowly revealed a lush green lagoon with tropical plants and birds flying all around. There were houses on stilts at the water's edge and all the homes were connected to a massive system of docks that were used as walkways between the houses, shops and other various parts of the city.

"Damn it… beautiful as ever, but after everything we have been through, it does nothing for the senses." Barnaban muttered as he gazed upon Sukini City. The Cherry Maria was now completely out of the cave and heading towards the center of the lagoon.

Meanwhile On the Sukini City Dock Ways

"Mama, Mama! Come look quick!" A young child called out to his mother from a dock that led out into the bay. His mother was currently busy feeding the child's baby sister at the time but decided to humor her child's wishes and came out of the family hut to see just what the boy was so excited about. When her sight met with what her son was pointing at the woman's eyes grew wide at the image before her. Her child's voice echoed softly and faded into the background as she starred at the pirate ship in the bay.

"That ship just came out of the 'Unforgivable Path!" The child roared in astonishment.

This yelling caught the attention of many other villagers and one by one, the people of Sukini City began to form a mob along the docks as they all watched the ship sail closer. Their mouths were all agape not knowing what to do in this situation. They had never witnessed a ship enter the bay from 'that' cave before.

The locals all watched as the ship turned and pulled up to a nearby dock. Certain members of the city hesitantly started to move their feet towards the ship to see who could have survived that hellish cave. Others began to step backwards fearing that the only things that could handle that path were demons!

"Attention everyone!" A sudden, strong and velvety voice boomed over the lagoon.

The mob of citizens quieted down immediately and turned towards who they knew the voice belonged to. It was the Mayor of Sukini City, Mayor Dimblanté. She was an incredibly tall and slender woman with a rather distinctive tan complexion. She had waist length black hair with highlights of red that ran through it here and there. A fancy pair of angular sun-glasses were worn on her face and she wore a burgundy pantsuit with a royal blue badge pinned on the front indicating her status in the city.

Once the mayor realized the attention was now on her she continued. "I understand that the events today with '8-Fold' and the Marines have rattled some of you and now with this current situation many of you are concerned. I just want to let you all know that our officers will now move in on this mysterious ship and see what or who is on it."

It was reassuring for most of the citizens present at the docks to hear that their Mayor had things handled so well now. However how fast efforts were made on her part to already assemble a plan of investigation despite the ship being present for only a couple of minutes left many more amazed than reassured.

With this said a group of 20 armed officers hustled onto the dock that the Cherry Maria was now about to dock at.

The mayor continued to speak as this situation was being looked into. "Now as they check this mystery ship I would like to tell about the event with '8-Fold' and the Marines. I received a call from Lieutenant Commander Difetto just moments ago telling me that he and his crew successfully sent '8-Fold' away from this island after a hard fought battle at sea. As you all know '8-Fold' Remey and his crew, The Rascal Pirates have stuck around Yortori Rise for a while now, and starting today the Marines have finally decided to station troops here on a more regularly based schedule for our safety.

A sudden uproar of whispers and cheers started to break out from the crowd after hearing this but the mayor motioned for them to quiet down so she could tell the last bits of information she had.

"Lieutenant Commander Difetto himself will be coming into the city momentarily to give us more information on the matter. "

Then looking up to see how close the ship was to docking the mayor realized that it was just a couple feet away and she paused her speech and stared. This in turn caused the citizens to follow suit and they all watched the scene at hand in a breathless frenzy.

A sudden rope was thrown off the side of the ship and an officer barely managed to catch it as it bobbled in his hands from shear surprise. This showed the everyone watching in the city that someone was indeed on-board. The officer with the rope then proceeded to tie the rope to the dock and the crowd watched as the ship eventually came to a stop.

Barnaban who had been kneeling down on the deck of the ship for the past couple of minutes was out of sight to people peering from the docks He was busy mixing some 'Hell Sprout Seeds' and other chemicals in his travel sized mortar and pestle. Once he ground it all up into a fine powder he swept it into a tiny bag and tucked it in his pocket. "I hope I don't have to use this." He uttered as he shook his head slowly.

Still hunched over on the ground there was no sign of the life that threw over the rope from the Cherry Maria for the citizens of Sukini City to see so tension began to grow.

"Could this be a sneak attack?!" One startled citizen shouted. They couldn't take the suspense any longer. "Was it all a trick?!" "We fell for it we are doomed!" Other shouts followed causing a state of panic to develop deep within the minds of many.

Suddenly the crowd was left speechless as a fuzzy being leaped off of the ship and soared through the air until it landed onto the dock with a thud.

"Ah…ah…a… koala?!" One of the officers muttered, confused at the sight before him. The other officers all began to scratch their heads as they watched the koala run frantically passed them. What was a koala doing on that ship? That was the thought on everyone's mind.

"Polen come back here." Barnaban shouted from the Cherry Maria as he finally rose to his feet to reveal himself.

"Look there's someone on the ship!" A citizen shouted as he pointed at Barnaban.

"He is human?" "No way this can't be true!" That flag he has flying on his ship says all we need to know. He is a pirate we can't trust him!" These were just some of the shouts being thrown out about now that Barnaban had finally shown himself.

Barnaban expected a welcoming party but the sight before him was really something else. He figured that just about the entire population of Sukini City was staring at him from the docks. Although the population really wasn't too big he still felt odd being the center of attention to a group of people of this size. He quickly cleared his throat to announce what he had to say to the people.

"Hello people of Sukini City, I realize this might sound cliché but I mean you know harm… Yes I understand that it is hard to believe me with a pirate flag flapping in the breeze behind me but it is the truth. I realize that your experience with '8-Fold' and other pirates like him might have ruined all pirates in your eyes but I can guarantee you that I myself and a young man who I met today who just happens to be the captain of this ship are not like the others."

Many whispers began to fill the crowd as the people then watched Barnaban hop down from the ship onto the dock beneath him. He then continued to speak.

"I myself have visited your city on various occasions in the past so I am well aware of the awe you all must be in after seeing a ship come out of the 'Unforgiving Path'. I had heard of its rumors and can now say I lived them… all because the captain of this ship that you see before you has what some might call the 'heart of an adventurer.' He however has not made it out of the cave yet…"

After hearing all of this Mayor Dimblanté couldn't afford not to speak so she butted in quickly as to show authority. "Still in there?!"

Barnaban nodded as he replied. "He fell off the ship and into the current below. I realize this is a lot to ask, especially from a stranger, but is there any way you could provide a search party and go into the cavern to look for him? He is an honorable young man I give you my word on that."

The crowd was silent after hearing this news. Although the man before them was a stranger and on top of that a pirate they couldn't help but feel what he was saying was true about the overboard captain.

Mayor Dimblanté wished there was something special that she could say, she felt the emotions of her citizens wavering around her from the news they had heard but she had to respond with the truth.

"From this side we can't get into the cave due to the overwhelming current, and as for searching from the other side… well that could wind up costing us more… well maybe not 'more' but it might endanger the lives of those who search."

The mayor had slipped a little realizing that subconsciously she had revealed that she already considered the captain dead. She hoped it wouldn't be paid too much attention to however. A slip up like that with the people obviously so attached to this event now could severely impact her re-election next year.

As the mayor's response sunk in on everyone Barnaban nodded his head. "I understand." He then pressed his fingers into his forehead and sighed.

Suddenly out of nowhere however a loud screeching voice broke the dramatic silence that had fallen on the Sukini City Docks. "ATTENTION, THIS IS LIEUTENANT COMMANDER DIFETTO OF THE MARINES!"

Everyone at the docks was so caught up in Barnaban's story that no one had even noticed the marine ship enter the lagoon from one of the many other caverns entering the city.

The marine ship cruised up to the docks before the mob that was present and stopped next to the Cherry Maria.

A scratchy voice was then heard again over the Den Den Mushi. "PEOPLE OF SUKINI CITY! PIRATES BELONGING TO THE BLAZING STALLION PIRATES HAVE BEEN LOCKED UP ON BOARD THIS SHIP! THEY WERE FOUND SWIMMING IN ONE OF THE CAVERNS. WE SUSPECT A SNEAK ATTACK WAS BEING PLANNED. THEIR CAPTAIN BARNABAN NOOSECLEF HAS YET TO BE FOUND HOWEVER…"

The feed was suddenly cut out however as word reached Difetto that his men had surprisingly spotted Barnaban directly on the dock next to them. This made Difetto spring to his feet as he ran out onto the deck of the marine ship. "Attention people of Sukini City that man before you is none other than Barnaban Nooseclef! Back away immediately I am sure he was about to lure you into his trap! Too bad for him we caught his crew!"

The crowd was startled at this turn of events and all began to retreat. Their spirits were crushed. How could they have been so foolish to trust that pirate? Mayor Dimblanté gave instructions as the mob began to get a safe distance from the pirate. Many retreated to their homes not able to handle all the commotion before them. Such wild events were far from the norm in Sukini City and this was simply too much for the common townsfolk to take in all at once.

Barnaban was now left in a sticky situation that knotted up his stomach like nothing before. He was unable to help Oregano, he was seen as a filthy liar by an entire city, he was now targeted by a marine ship and he stood there all the while knowing that his crew was being held helpless inside of it.

He turned to Difetto and sighed. "I guess it is the end of the line for me today."

Difetto sneered at this comment from Barnaban as he chuckled. "The end of the line indeed." Difetto then pulled out a cigarette and lit it before he continued. "Now are you going to offer yourself up the easy way or are you going to put up a fight?"

Barnaban hung his head low as he contemplated an answer to Difetto's question. He looked up and was about to reply to the question when suddenly a gunshot echoed through the lagoon.

Difetto was now as pale as a ghost standing on the deck of his ship. He couldn't move. The cigarette he had just lit had just been blown to pieces from a bullet while still in his mouth.

"HE IS GOING TO PUT UP A FIGHT!"

A voice called out from the lagoon. Marines and the few Sukini citizens still near the event had their heads spinning looking for where the shot could have come from. Whoever shot it was nowhere to be seen.

"Oregano…?" Barnaban softly muttered as he held back tears. A massive grin quickly took the place of sadness though as he drew his wooden blades.

Difetto was still in shock with what had just happened not more than 3 inches from his head. His men were doing their best to try and snap him out of it so that they could receive orders but nothing seemed to work.

Suddenly another shot was heard and everyone watched to see what this sharpshooter would hit next. There was no target this time however as the shooter's voice rang out over the lagoon again.

"Those were warning shots you sucker! Another one and it is 3 strikes you're out! Please just release the Blazing Stallion pirates and leave us alone."

Adrenalin and rage kicked in for Difetto at this moment and managed to snap him out of his paralysis as he signaled to the men that they were not in any position to fight against a sniper in this situation.

His men then hurriedly entered the jail cells and brought the pirates out and escorted them out onto the docks.

After seeing this task was completed, Difetto began to grit his teeth in frustration. "THERE YOU ARE YOU COWARD! DON"T HIDE BEHIND THAT GUN NEXT TIME WE MEET!" And with that Difetto and his ship exited the lagoon through the caverns on the opposite side of the island.

"THANKS!" Oregano replied to Difetto as he watched the marine ship leave the area. Completely ignoring everything he said except for 'There you are'. He then proceeded to get to the scene at the docks so he could finally squeeze Polen and meet back up with Barnaban. He honestly couldn't believe he was still alive after what he had just experienced but he didn't come out of it unscathed by any means. He had barely managed to climb his way up a little ways onto the cliffs of the lagoon to find a suitable place to snipe from without the use of his left leg.

While being swept about in the harsh current he was slammed multiple times into countless rocks and boulders and he ended up with a broken left leg. He had a few cuts and bruises here and there as well but the broken leg was the big thing. He knew that scaling down this cliff was going to be a real pain but he wasn't about to wimp out and be a baby so he kept on going. This determination was partly due because he really wanted to makes sure Polen was alright, partly because he knew his leg needed to be treated and a small part of him even thought that getting out of this place as quickly as possible after what he had just done to those marines might be a good idea. So he bit his lip and made his way down the cliff. Only slipping a couple of times here and there, each slip up doing absolute wonders for his broken leg.

Back at the docks the Burning Stallion Pirates all came running to their captain who greeted them all with a cheerful yell. They had finally made it back together after all they had been through today.

Barnaban was then asked to explain the sniper situation which he did as fast as he could. He wanted them all to be on the same page. He then turned to the people of Sukini City and saw terror in their faces. His heart sank as he knew he couldn't possibly win them over after what Difetto had said. He suspected the officers present might try and attack them so he alerted his crew to keep their eyes open to the mob.

Now that he had them looking out for safety he had bigger matters to attend to as he scanned the area for any sign of Oregano. As he continued looking a small speak caught his eye and was moving towards him from a dock in the distance. As the speak got large enough for him to see he began to shake his head as he smiled. It was Oregano! Clung to the young man's head was a fuzzy koala which made Barnaban chuckle. "Well you found him huh Polen?" Barnaban smiled at the sight but then noticed a severe limp in Oregano's walk as he made his way towards him . Barnaban quickly alerted the doctor of his crew of a possible issue. The doctor gave Barnaban a nod as he took off a massive case that he carried on his back nearly the size of himself.

As Oregano struggled along the docks he was still so happy that he had made it out alive. He was drifting off thinking about what he had gone through when suddenly Polen became aware that he was not paying any attention to him so he began to wiggle all about on him. "Ayeee Poleeeen!" Oregano laughed as he rubbed the koala's head. Polen was clinging to him as tightly as possible and couldn't stop whining in joy.

As Oregano continued to his ship he could hear the people of Sukini City whisper. "Did he really come out of the 'Unforgiving Path?" "Maybe that Barnaban was actually telling the truth!"

Oregano shook his head and smiled at these comments. "He was in some senses a legend on this island and that was incredibly cool to him!

He finally made it to the dock that had the Cherry Maria docked at it and Barnaban and his crew were waiting for him on the dock beside it. Oregano shook the hands of the pirates and fell down to the ground. He explained to them that he thought he had broken his leg. The Burning Stallion doctor checked him and unfortunately he confirmed this belief of Oregano's to be true.

As the doctor prepared his supplies Oregano then explained to the pirates how he managed to come out alive from the cave. He mentioned how Barnaban's fire helped him see helpful points while in the cave that he could grab onto like small stalactites and such and eventually he found a gritty beach like path that was above the water level that he got to rest on for a while. The beach eventually led to a small natural trail that winded around rock formations and eventually led him to calmer water that he was able to traverse.

Barnaban and his crew were amazed by all of this and were truly in awe that they had witnessed such a miracle take place before them.

Once the doctor shook off his amazement at Oregano's story he opened his case and began to prepare a special cast for Oregano. His equipment was incredibly efficient and fast and before Oregano knew it his left leg was in a cast that started just below his knee and went down to the start of his toes. The materials used by the doctor all had a small red decal that resembled a sweater of some sorts and had the letters 'CRDGN' underneath it.

Oregano was then given a foldable crutch that had been stored in the case and a bottle of pain medicine as well.

Oregano stood up slowly with the help of Barnaban's crew and placed his cast on the dock with a thud. He worked the crutch up underneath his left armpit with minimal effort. He wobbled for a moment but caught his balance in just the right time before tumbling off the dock and into the lagoon.

"Whoa whoops!" Oregano laughed as he eventually got the hang of using the crutch. "Thanks so much for everything!"

Barnaban then shook his head as he muttered "It is the least we could do Oregano! You saved us from a life in jail!"

Oregano smiled as he nodded "Haha yeah I guess you are right! But hey, you took awesome care of my ship and Polen while I was gone so let's call it even!"

Barnaban and the rest of the Burning Stallion pirates all smiled as they nodded.

Oregano then looked up to the sky that peaked down into the crater-like lagoon surrounded by cliff walls on all sides that they were all within. He saw that it was starting to get late so he figured he better head on out. "Well I think I need to get out of here Barnaban do you happen to know which is the closest island to this one? I didn't really get to do any shopping or anything here like I had hoped due to the big ordeal."

Barnaban smiled as he nodded. "Yes the closest to here would be Oion. It's famous for tough Marines though so be careful. It seems like you are likely already a big target. I would bet that Difetto is already planning to have this island surrounded to capture us all so leaving now is certainly for the best. Just leave through any of the caverns… none of those are cursed!" Barnaban laughed as he continued. "And just head south west, you should be at Oion by noon tomorrow if you leave now. Are you sure you are going to be alright with that leg of yours though?"

Oregano smiled and gave Barnaban a thumbs up. "Thanks man! Oh and yep! I will be just fine! An adventure worth experiencing should never be easy and I got reminded of that today! I feel more alive than ever before! I think I could do probably do anything I set my mind to!"

Oregano then turned to the Cherry Maria and grabbed onto the ladder. He pulled up a bit and realized his leg was absolutely killing him. "Um well could I just get a boost up onto my ship real quick?"

Barnaban busted up laughing at this statement because it just followed Oregano's heroic 'I can do anything speech' but he none the less helped Oregano up the ladder and onto his ship.

Oregano then leaned over and asked. "Wait how are you guys getting off this island?" Barnaban then pressed his fingers to his forehead as he suddenly chuckled "Well we are despised by the people of this island already so we might as well be pirates and just steal us a ship!"

Oregano laughed at Barnaban's reasoning and hobbled over to the steering wheel with his crutch so that he could set out.

Barnaban waved as Oregano and Polen pulled out of the dock and sailed across the lagoon and ultimately through one of the many caverns that lined the cliff walls.

"WE WILL MEET AGAIN SOMEDAY OREGANO!" Barnaban called out.

"YOU BET MAN!" Oregano replied as the Cherry Maria completely exited the cavern it traveled through. He was finally back out at sea after the crazy time he had had today.

"Well Polen next stop Oion! Hopefully we have another great adventure there too huh?!" Oregano teased his pet koala. Polen stuck out his tongue at this comment and Oregano busted up laughing. "I guess we can turn it down a notch or two! I did almost die today huh?!"

Polen shook his head slowly as he put his paw to his face. Oregano was crazy, but he couldn't help it. That was just who he was and Polen was going to stick with him no matter what.

Meanwhile Back on the Sukini City Docks

A sudden smirk began to appear on Mayor Dimblanté's face as her mind began racing.

"So his name was Oregano huh?" She whispered as she recalled what Barnaban had shouted.

"I'm certain Difetto would love to hear that name!" She laughed as she retreated away from the docks. No scoundrel is going to make a ruckus in her city and get away with it. His disrespect to the marines would give her island a bad name and her reputation would be at stake. Whether this Oregano was a legend or not she was the boss and would make him pay! Plus getting on the good side of a Marine like Difetto would certainly prove to be advantageous for her status and may even provide benefits to boot. These thoughts and more were simply thrilling in her mind as she couldn't wait to get back to her office and notify Difetto of everything she knew.


	10. Sorus Chapter 2

Disclaimer: We do not own One Piece in any way.

Sorus Gets Pissed Off and Cuts Shit Up!

By: Orrahn

On a stormy sea: West Blue

"This is BULLSHIT!" Sorus roared, causing _The Cheese Grater _to rock back and forth in the rough seas. "What is the meaning of this!" He growled, throwing the newspaper to the ground before picking it back up for a second look. It was true, he really did not get credit for the assault on the government official back in Mozorella kingdom. "AN ANGRY LION!" Sorus growled "WHAT THE FUCK IS THIS!"

"Yo, Sorus, could ya keep it down? Marko and I are trying to fish!"

"Yea, guess you'll just have to try harder next time… man." Marko said as he reeled up his line, realizing that he would not catch much in the middle of such rough seas. Vince followed suit and took a seat on deck, not far from Sorus who was at the helm.

"WOULD YOU TWO SHUT UP!" Sorus snapped back before glaring back at the paper "Lone Pirate Ruins Village Celebration! WHAT SORT OF SHIT NEWS IS THIS! Has the world really gotten so pathetic that this makes the news?" Sorus growled as he flipped the newspaper page, causing the ship to momentarily spin, almost sending all three flying off the ship.

"Woah… man!" Marko yelled back as he ran up and took the helm. "Don't steer if you are going to read… man!" Marko continued as rain suddenly began to poor upon the lone ship.

"Oh shut up!" Sorus snapped back, eyes intent on the page which was now beginning to run.

"I feel safer now that Marko has the helm." Vince chimed in. Vince was currently clutching the side of the ship with his snake-like arms.

Sorus didn't respond back, he was now staring at the running page with a vicious grin on his face.

"What happened? It looks like you're playing something yo!" Vince asked as he gazed at Sorus.

Sorus ignored Vince and bursted into a fit of laughter "DAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" He laughed madly. "THIS IS PERFECT."

"…man" Sorus could barely hear Marko moan over the roar of the sea, rain, and Sorus's laughter.

"Yo, what are ya plannin'?" Vince asked concerned, obviously not hearing Marko either.

"All I need is more than one man who is able to fight!" He grinned

"Hey we can fight too!" Vince whined.

"I can… Ilon…man" Marko said again, his words a little more decipherable this time.

"DAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" Sorus laughed again, ignoring the ship's two other passengers completely. "This is perfect! They will never expect this! DAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" Sorus's fit of laughter continue as he let the newspaper fly away in the winds.

"…man" Marko concluded the same sentence again, suddenly getting Sorus's attention.

"What the hell are you trying to say Marko?" Sorus growled, obviously annoyed.

The newspaper skidded on the sea; the headlined of that page were barely visible. 'Rage King Imprisoned!' The headlines read as a giant wave engulfed the page and brought it to its water grave.

"I said I see an island… man" Marko finally said clearly.

Sorus and Vince suddenly snapped their gazes to the bow of the ship. "WHAT!"

Haymaker City Docks: Vilus Island

"Alms for an ex-leper?" A jolly man skipped alongside Sorus on the docks.

"Ex-leper?" Sorus asked, hardly caring.

"Indeed sir, used to be a leper but I got c-." The man started his response before tearing off into a dreadful scream. Sorus had elbowed the man in the gut, sending him flying off the dock and into the water.

"Yo, what was that for?" Vince said as water from the man's impact with the ocean splashed on him while he and Marko ran to catch up with Sorus.

"He spit on me while talking…" Sorus said with a look of pure hate in his eyes. "Could you and Marko do me a favor?"

"Sure, what could we do… man?" Marko responded.

"Go back to the ship and guard it for me, we can't afford to have it stolen." Sorus responded.

"Sure, you can count on us… man" Marko responded as he and Vince headed back to the ship upon Sorus's orders.

"Finally, some peace and quiet!" Sorus growled to himself. The red haired man continued down the dock "First I need some strong crewmembers, maybe even a bounty head. And then I need a new ship, and I can leave those annoying little fucks in the dust." He continued to ramble about the pesky duo.

Sorus took his first step off the dock and into Haymaker City. "This place is shit!" Sorus grumbled his first impressions of the city though it was more of a town. He had heard of Haymaker City before and knew of its bad relations with the world government. There were outlaws everywhere, fighting in the streets. "The people are the trash of this world." He grimaced.

Two burly men were doing just that. One had a large blue mustache; the other had a long blond beard. "Mustache!" The mustachioed avenger roared as he knocked his bearded opponent out with a mighty uppercut.

He had no time to revel in his victory however, as Sorus had him by the collar in an instant. There was a loud crash as the man collided with the wall of the nearest building and Sorus walked up to him. "W-what do y-you want f-from m-me?" The man stuttered as blood dripped down his face.

"I was just wondering if you'd be so kind as to point me to a bar where I could find people who can actually fight" Sorus grinned upon the mustachioed man.

Market District: Haymaker City

CRASH! A body flew into the nearby stalls and dust kicked up from the ground of the marketplace.

"Hey, isn't that?" A man said as spectators crowded around the area to see what was going on. A large man with short red hair and a chinstrap stood in the center of the commotion in a fighting stance. He was about twelve feet tall and muscular with fists larger than most people's faces.

"That is 'Drill Fist' Urlocker! A monster with a bounty of 10,000,000 belli!" Another man yelled as noise from the wreckage grabbed everyone's attention. A man with full bronze armor and a fumanchu beard stood up and let out a roar.

"You think you can hurt me with a weak punch like that! No one can get through my armor, or my name isn't 'Bronze Bearer' Gizzaro! I have a bounty of 8,000,000 belli!" He gloated as he drew his trident and began to spin it expertly before returning to a fighting stance.

Urlocker began to grin "I guess I will have to be serious then." He said as he drew out two gauntlets with massive steel drills on the top and put them on. A mechanical buzz could be heard as he clenched his fists, causing the two drills to spin.

"Trident Holliday!" Gizzaro exclaimed just before arriving within Urlocker's range and dodging to the right. At the same time, Gizzaro tossed the trident to his left hand and whipped it up to Urlocker's throat.

Urlocker, however had already ducked and shifted his bodyweight to the right. "Excavator's Wrath!" He roared as he bucked forward and jabbed with his right fist.

There was a tiny fraction of a second where it seemed like Gizzaro's armor had stopped the jab, but these assumptions were wrong. The armor began to crack under the whine of the drill and the massive muscles of Urlocker. "AAAHHH" He roared with veins popping out of his arms. The breast plate began to crack shortly before shattering everywhere. A slightly plump and shirtless Gizzaro had a moment to show his face of pure terror before Urlocker's fist connected with his flabby flesh.

Larry's Pub: Haymaker City

"Hey redhead!" A burly drunk man in the corner of the bar shouted out. "What is with that stupid looking towel on your shoulders?"

Sorus ignored the man and walked straight to the bar. "Get me some orange juice, sir!" Sorus growled, adding a "sir" to the end out of pure habit rather than any actual respect.

A couple of people laughed as the tatted up and muscular man was handed a glass or orange juice in a bar for alcohol.

"You wouldn't happen to be Larry would you, sir?" Sorus asked the bartender who was a heavy built man with a black horseshoe mustache and a balding patch at the back of his head.

"Yes I would; now why would I have time to care for a person who comes into my bar and asks for juice!" Larry replied with a sneer.

Sorus ignored the comment for the first time in his life, he had business "I need to know where I could find strong people in this town, it is supposed to be a gathering place for outlaws right?"

Larry paused for a second, was this man a bounty hunter or a marine? He couldn't be sure though he had never seen him in the newspapers, and Larry was a well-informed person. "What's it to ya? Are ya lookin' to get killed?" Larry grunted, not caring much one way or another.

Shuffling could now be heard in the back of the bar, a shirtless man with a full steel helmet was now visible. Upon this man's back was a giant sword carved from the bone of some massive creature, it looked far more likely to crush your skull than split it.

Sorus glanced back at the man for a moment and examined him. He was huge, at least fourteen feet tall and covered in scars on his hair chest. His hair was completely covered by his helmet and his muscles were ridiculously defined. The man lifted his helmet to look at Sorus, he was ugly, had a huge nose, a black shadowed beard, and several missing teeth. Beady black eyes gazed at Sorus, "What the hell are you lookin at?" He growled in a slightly dumb sounding voice.

"You, I came here to find some crewmembers but you look a bit too stupid to make it far with me." Sorus grinned back.

"Watch it!" Larry warned "That is "Bone Crusher" Faar Gilgazetz! He has the second largest bounty on the island right now with 9,000,000 belli on his head."

"I guess he might be better than I thought." Sorus grinned as Gilgazetz lowered his helm and stood up to face Sorus with one hand on his massive weapon.

Market District: Haymaker City

People scattered as Urlocker made his way through the streets of the market district, his crew members following close behind. The hulky man was fully confident in his abilities. At ten million belli, he had the highest bounty on the island; it was only a matter of time before the newcomer reached the ranks of men such as Capone "Gang" Bege. As a feared pirate from the West Blue, or at least that is how he saw himself.

The streets abandoned as Urlocker menacingly marched through them. No one seemed to want to challenge him after he so easily punched through Gizarro's armor. "RAHAHAHA!" he laughed as he kicked a nearby table about twenty feet forward and into a wall. "This is the life, I like this town! I think that I will take it, what do you think boys?" he asked his crew who screamed their approval.

"Vrmblmndngf" a noise came from a table at a nearby café followed by a clink and a series of coughing.

Urlocker looked to the table with a wild look in his eyes to see three men there. The first was sitting quietly on the other end; he was a tall man with a white ponytail shouldering a rifle. This man had a single scar going through his lips. In terms of clothing the man went shirtless to expose his lankily muscular, scarred up body and wore a pair of shorts held up with a brown sash. He also had had a pair of sandals so he wouldn't have to move around in bare feet.

The next man was attempting to pat the coughing third man on the back in hopes of stopping the coughing. "Damn it Appatus, when you wanna say something tough, you have to take that damned pipe outta your mouth!" he growled. This man was huge, had a mane of black hair, and was covered face to toe with scars. He had no shirt or shoes but wore long pants, with a brown sash to hold them up. Though he was shirtless, he wore a leather harness on his body. On the back of this harness were two rather vicious looking battle axes.

The third man stopped coughing at last before taking a big breath and picking up both his pipe and the pen he had knocked on the ground. "Thanks Ope" he gasped as he took a puff from his pipe and continued to draw on the piece of paper. This man was slim but not weak in build and around six feet tall. He had an intricate blonde goatee and rather thin blond hair that was currently covered by a grey and brown plaid golfer's cap. He also had carefully shaved sideburns as to not clash with the round spectacles he wore on his nose. In terms of clothing, Appatus wore a brown, red and yellow plaid button down shirt with the sleeves cut off as well as same colored plaid pants torn off at the knees to make shorts. Appatus topped all this off by wearing black dress shoes with no socks, completely offsetting the rest of his outfit.

"WHAT THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU ARE DOING!" Urlocker growled at the brazen disrespect being shown to him.

Appatus removed his pipe this time before speaking and let out a couple puffs of smoke. "Oh sorry sir, I choked. What I was trying to say was that it would be a bad decision to do such a thing in this town." He then took another inhale of tobacco before puffing out the smoke to speak again. "Call it ironic but the order of Vilus Island is completely based on chaos. There are always so many bounty heads here that every time one tries to take over another will stop them. Do not be so conceited as to think you can take all the pirates on this island on at once." Appatus said before giving his pipe one final puff and standing up.

"Well I won't have to deal with them all at once if I take them one at a time. Why don't you just give up Appatus "The Gazelle"? You are outnumbered thirty to th-" Urlocker began before realizing that the two people with Appatus had disappeared, causing a large grin to spread across his face. "Thirty to one… how does it feel to be betrayed?" Urlocker said as he equipped his drill fists and his men pointed their weapons at their lone opponent.

Appatus took another puff from his pipe in an awkward silence before the sounds of guns loading drew everyone's attention. Appatus's officers were back with the rest of the crew, numbering about 26 including the officers and the captain. "Thank you for gathering the men on such a short notice Ope and Antil." Appatus said as he took a martial artist stance and began to move his left hand towards his hat.

Larry's Pub: Haymaker City

Sorus's arms were tired, he wasn't sure if he could block one more attack from that massive weapon with such average-sized blades. Sorus backed up a step and straightened his towel to prevent it from falling from his shoulders. They were standing right outside Larry's pub, leaving the audience in total awe with Sorus's ability to deflect such powerful attacks.

Gilgazetz was ridiculously powerful and fast for having such a huge weapon, but that was about all that he had going for him. He only had a couple an actual techniques and even with those he was not the most accurate with his blows. Sorus smiled, he was ready to go on the offensive. A rustling sound was made as Sorus put away his first double sword and put both hands on the elongated hilt.

"RIB BREAKER!" Gilgazetz roared while his giant wepon soared through the air at Sorus's midsection, coming from his left.

Sorus jumped into the air at an angle so the sword would be under his left side. Sorus grinned wider as he separated the double blade and twisted his body to stab the sword in his right hand into Gilgazetz's first wrist and coming out of his second, pinning his wrists together. Sorus's assault wasn't over yet as he used the momentum of the sword to spin him around. "SOLAR FLARE!" Roared Sorus while the sword in his left hand cut Gilgazetz from his right shoulder to his left hip and Sorus dropped to the ground. The "Bone Crusher" followed shortly after, crashing to the floor in complete defeat. Sorus removed the other half of his second double sword from Gilgazetz's arms and put them away before reentering the pub, leaving everyone in complete shock.

"So Larry, do you think I will be able to find someone stronger than that on this island?" Sorus asked the bartender as he picked up his orange juice and finished it up while the Bone Crushing Pirate Crew watched in total shock.

Market District: Haymaker City

People gasped and began muttering amongst themselves.

There was a loud crash as dust was kicked everywhere. A huge fight had come to a close and no one could believe the outcome.

"Captain, catch!" Antil shouted when a plaid golf hat flew through the air and into its owner's hand.

Appatus removed his pipe from his mouth and puffed out some smoke rings. "Thank you, I need to cover my head back up, people are looking at me funny." He said as he placed the hat firmly upon his head. "Have you two seen the map I was drawing? I can't find it in all this mess." Appatus stated as he puffed another smoke ring.

Sorus felt something brush against his leg and looked down. It was a piece of paper with drawings on it, normally Sorus would have taken the high road and stomped the paper into oblivion, but this time he thought he saw something interesting on the paper and picked it up.

His suspicions were confirmed, in his hands was a map including the various islands and dangerous spots in the ocean. Sorus grinned savagely and held it up in the air, about to ask who drew the map when he saw the wreckage before him. It looked like a storm had torn through the marketplace. Sorus scanned the area for people, there were a couple of people starring on the sides of the streets, but most of the citizens had deserted the area. Sorus could see a large group of nearly thirty armed men rushing to the aid of a massive man on the ground. On the opposite side of this man was a man in plaid with something sticking out of his mouth.

'A pirate fight…' Sorus concluded as he spotted Appatus's crewmates, 'Must have been a captain battle' Sorus added to himself, completely forgetting about the map in his hand. "HEY, YOU IN THE PLAID!" Sorus screamed at the top of his lungs, causing the entire area to go quiet and turn to him. "ARE YOU THE MAN KNOWN AS 'DRILL FIST' URLOCKER!"

Appatus removed his pipe and puffed out a ring before slowly walking forward to get a better look at the man who was screaming at him. Urlocker's crew cowered away as he stepped over their captain who was still moaning on the ground. Appatus only had a slight nose bleed that dripped onto his long blond goatee and a cut on his arm. Upon getting closer Appatus spotted the paper in Sorus's hand "Excuse me sir, would that happen to be a map in your hand?"

Sorus's eyes got bloodshot and veiny at this question; this man was blatantly ignoring him.

Appatus let out a sigh upon seeing Sorus's response, "Oh and I am not Urlocker, that him lying over there on the ground." Appatus said as he replaced the pipe in his mouth.

Sorus's eyes returned to normal at Appatus's response and the crazed warrior busted out laughing "DAHAHAHAHAHAHA," He laughed maniacly, "and you want to tell me that you did that?"

"Why yes I did, the name is Appatus though the authorities of this ocean call me 'the Gazelle' I have a bounty of six million belli on my head." He said in his normal, sophisticated fashion. "Now would you answer my question good sir?"

"DAHAHAHAHA, I guess you aren't just some nobody then!" Sorus exclaimed his own, gruff fashion. "And yes this is a map, is it yours?"

"Why yes it is, now it has been a pleasure meeting you, but I would really like that back." Appatus replied as he reached out a hand and stepped forward. Sorus lashed forward with a sudden kick that was, much to Sorus's surprise evaded by Appatus with a quick backwards jump. "Now sir, don't get hasty. Please just hand the map over."

"Well I can't say I like your politeness, but I can't pass up this opportunity since you already took my first option from me." Sorus growled.

Appatus let out a sigh "And what option did I take from you."

"Well I wanted that brute you floored and his men to join me on a little… voyage." Sorus grinned "But seeing that you not only beat him easily, but you also can draw maps, you are a much better choice DAHAHAHAHAHA!" Sorus laughed again as he lowered himself into a brawler stance. "Now, if you want this back, you will have to beat me."

Appatus took a puff from his pipe and turned around "Sorry it's just not worth it, if all I get for winning is a map I can draw again."

Sorus's eyes turned bloodshot again at this "Wait!" he growled "I have already decided I want you, this prison break will never work without someone to take me there." Sorus said in a tone just loud enough for Appatus to hear.

Appatus spat his pipe to the ground as he erupted into a coughing fit. Several moments later, Appatus grabbed his pipe off the ground and put it back in his mouth, panting heavily all the while. "You mean to attack Callahan Prison?" Appatus asked, dumbstruck.

"Yea, and now that you know I can't let you live if you don't become my follower." Sorus growled, still in his fighting stance.

Appatus smiled at this response, gripped the pipe between his teeth. "Interesting, I think I shall consider your offer." Appatus responded as he straightened his hands and closed the gaps in between each finger, lowering himself into a strange offensive stance with his elbows raised to shoulder level on each side. Appatus was now standing like some sort of strange bird. "Though I think I would be justified in testing you as well."

Appatus moved forward with inhuman speed "Bushwillow slicer." He said calmly with his pipe still clenched in his mouth.

Sorus brought his arms up to defend himself, not sure exactly how Appatus planned on doing damage with a stance like that. Appatus made a quick "x" shaped strike with his hands before continuing through to Sorus's other side.

A burning sensation filled Sorus's arms as they burst open, blood spraying everywhere. "What the hell!" Sorus growled

Appatus smiled "I see you have become aquainted with my Savannah Seiken!" He smiled as he returned to his odd fighting stance.

Sorus swore that his eyes were tricking him; Appatus's nails were retracting back into his fingers. Sorus suddenly flashed back to the moment the attack connected with his forearm, Appatus had extended his nail at that exact moment as to focus the point of impact and cut into Sorus's skin "What is up with your nails!" Sorus growled.

Appatus burst into another fit of coughs; he couldn't believe Sorus had figured out his attack so quickly. Once he was done coughing, he stopped to breathe for a moment "I must say that I am surprised you figured out how I cut you so quickly. It is known as life return, which is the ability to manipulate the body to its full potential." Appatus began, taking another moment to smoke before continuing "Though I'll have you know that Savannah Seiken was originally intended to be used without life return."

Sorus darted forward and threw a quick jab with his left fist but Appatus managed to sidestep it only to get a right hook to the kidney. Sorus did not let up, however, and grabbed the back of Appatus's neck and brought his knee up to the man's gut. He spit his pipe to the ground in recoil to the strike with a loud grunt.

Appatus tore himself from Sorus's grip and stumbled back a couple of steps. Sorus did not miss a beat and jumped forward to throw a right hook. Appatus was expecting this and smoothly moved his head back before countering with a fury of Savannah Seiken stabs. "Manketti Barrage!" He called out, pushing Sorus back to avoid the brunt of the attack while keeping his forearms up on the defensive. Appatus lunged forward, aiming his hands in between Sorus's guard and spreaded them apart with amazing speed. "Bloom!" Appatus stated in addition to his original attack name.

Sorus's guard broke for an instant and Appatus seized the opportunity to get one more attack in. Since his arms were already extended, Appatus lunged in with a head butt. Sorus tensed his body, confident that he could take the attack. He was wrong and spat blood all over the ground from the impact of the head butt. Sorus was quick to respond and latched onto Appatus's hat, there was something underneath it.

Appatus tried to bring his head up, but Sorus fell on his rear and kicked Appatus over his body while keeping the hat firmly in his grip.

"What the hell…" Sorus gasped, he could not believe what he just saw. Before him, Appatus was struggling to his feet free of his hat with two grey horns with a series of rounded ridges following to the points that ended at the back of his head, curled towards each other. "Are you?"

"FREAK!" Someone form the streets shouted, but Appatus was unfazed. He was obviously used to the insults at this point.

"I am from the proud tribe of the Gazzilients." Appatus stated in an attempt to answer Sorus's obvious question. "Now if you would be so kind, let us finish this battle." He concluded as he moved his arms further out and perched himself on one leg in a completely offensive stance. "Tree of life stance."

Sorus grinned and reached for his swords, it was time to get serious. He began to spin each two-bladed sword rapidly in his hands when he saw a sudden movement behind Appatus. "APPATUS! DUCK!" Sorus roared as he reared back with his right arm and flung the double sword through the air, aiming where Appatus's head was. "BURNING METEOR!"

Appatus listened just in time to duck so that the true target took the attack across the chest. Urlocker had gotten back up and moved to ambush Appatus. The blade continued to spin and cut down everything in its path until it eventually wedged its way into a wall.

Haymaker City: The Docks

An hour or so had passed since the fight had concluded and a group stood next to a brown Galliot with crimson paint on the rim and bow. A Galliot was a small, two masted warship propelled by both oars and sails. This particular model seemed to be able to be operated by anywhere between twenty-five to fifty crew which was why Sorus made sure to recruit some of the members of Urlocker's crew before following Appatus to his ship. The figurehead of the ship was actually a massive winged spear whose head gleamed in the sunlight and slid smoothly into the bow of the ship. Just before the head of the spear was a massive crimson and gold shield with curve in the side to slide the spear shaft through. All of this was then topped off with a flag of a gazelle skull. "And here she is" Appatus said with a quick puff from his pipe "The Bladed Fury in all her glory!"

Sorus pointed at the flag "We are going to need to replace that with my own symbol" Sorus growled as he hopped onto the ship and the rest of the crew followed. Appatus had decided to join Sorus after he saved him saying that Sorus would have had the upper hand once he used his swords. Appatus still couldn't get over the fact that Sorus did not seem to care much that he had horns 'It's like he only cares about strength' Appatus shrugged to himself as he sat down in the captain's cabin across from Sorus and immediately getting to work on setting the course for Maroon Island.

The crew groaned in unison as the ship began to surge forward away from the docks thanks to the combined effort of their rowing.

"Yo, this is a lot of work!" A certain sailor groaned.

"Yea, can't we raise the sails yet… man" Another replied

* * *

><p>AN: Well sorry for the long wait, hope you guys are pumped up for the multi-part prison break next chap! Also we are putting the crews up on the One Piece Fan Fiction Wiki if you guys check that site out. The Rifts are going to have a short chapter two as well to prepare for a big third island. People please keep reviewing! I enjoy every review I can get, don't forget to read Kaira and Whale's chapters as well! Oh and yes my avatar is the rift pirate's logo its a smiley type flag with a yin-yang theme. Anyways I am going to peace out, Grandmaster Briz signing out!


	11. Blackroot Pirates Chapter 2 Part 1

Disclaimer: We do not own One Piece in anyway.

_Laqueus - Trap Island is Dangerous_

_On that island fifteen years earlier, the sun rarely ever shined, so when it did the people enjoy it while they can. A young five year old boy stood in the fields while basking in the sunlight. He had very short brown hair and grey eyes that made people frighten at their unusual color. He looked at the sun with curiosity and smiled with happiness._

"_-, your mother is calling for you! Hurry home!" A red-headed teenage girl dressed in a yellow dress yelled out at him. He waved as he started home. His house was a nice one story with flowers blooming around. Raiein opened the door and felt a chill run up his spine._

"_Mother, where are you?" He searched the house, but it was completely dark. "Mother…?" He heard sobbing from the master bedroom. He walked over there and opened the door. He saw his mother crying on the floor next to the bed. "Mother, why are you crying?" His mother looked up at him and hugged him tightly. He comforted her as best as he could._

"_Your father…."_

When Kaiyou had finally reached the island, the moon was hiding behind the clouds. She pulled her hoodie to her head as the chilly air attacked her skin. She tied her boat to the dock, after making sure her daggers were attached to her belt, she jumped off. Kaiyou decided to actually take a look at the island. The town was just as Finser said it would be like. There were barely houses standing, the stores were all in ruins. The land was scorched, evidence that a fire had occurred there, the trees were even sticking out in random directions. What really bothered her was the horrible stench of burning flesh and rotten corpses. Kaiyou had to try extremely hard not to let her dinner come up her throat. She managed to gag a few times before the stench was tolerable.

"Urgh… I feel sick." Kaiyou was about ready to leave the island, but a sound from her left made her stop. She felt the air around her freeze. Her eyes scanned her surroundings, something was out there. She could feel it, with caution she slowly moved one of her hands to her dagger. From the ruins, a red-headed woman with a brown dress came out with a basket in her hands. She noticed Kaiyou shocked.

"You aren't from around here." The woman looked around and walked quickly over to her. "It isn't safe here. Come with me." Kaiyou shook her head. "And why not?"

"I can't just leave my boat here if you say this place isn't safe." Kaiyou replied softly. The red-head sighed and went over to it. She looked at it for a few moments before nodding to herself.

"Alright, let me on and I'll show you a place that is safe to keep it docked. Hurry now!" Kaiyou nodded and followed the red-head back into her boat. The red-head took the boat to a small beach a mile away from the dock. It was an inlet with the clearest waters Kaiyou has ever seen since landing on the island. The red-head immediately jumped off and landed on the sand. She waited for Kaiyou to disembark with a small bag. When Kaiyou stood on the beach, the red-head immediately started walking up the mountain. "Names Lynda, what's yours?"

"I'm Aeris Kaiyou, but Kaiyou is fine." Kaiyou answered gently. "Where are we going, Lynda?" The path got extremely narrow suddenly.

"We're going to the place where things aren't as bad as down there." Lynda sighed under her breath. "The island has recently been attacked by a monster… we thought it was merely a legend. You should leave as soon as possible. This island is not safe anymore." Loose rocks fell down into the ravine.

"Then why don't you and the rest leave also? I mean if this island is no longer safe why not just leave?" Kaiyou asked with innocent curiosity. Lynda smiled sadly and continued on the path.

"Watch your step, the rocks here are much softer." A brief pause and the quietness of the area brought Kaiyou chills. "We don't leave, because this is our home. No matter how painful it is, no matter how difficult it is; this will always be our home and the place of our childhood. I don't think I could just leave it without a deep sense of regret." Kaiyou watched as the pathway grows bigger and bigger as the two of them walked on. "We're almost there. I hope you don't mind the town. This is the only one of the two towns that was spared from the monster's wraith." They arrived at a flatten area on top of the mountain. The trees here were leafless and black. The ground was soft like a cloud. "The only place that was totally left unscathed was that damn Marine base." At the mention of unscathed, Kaiyou looked up at Lynda shocked.

"How is that possible? I mean if the monster went rampage on the island then shouldn't they also be in a mess?" Kaiyou exclaimed quietly. Lynda sighed tiredly.

"I understand what you're saying. Everyone is suspicious of them. They've been pretty quiet lately and Raiein is planning to figure out what they're doing inside that base." Lynda replied absently. The town was dark with lights from candles showing through the windows. It looked almost like a ghost town from Kaiyou's perspective.

"Who's Raiein?" Kaiyou asked innocently at Lynda's slip. Lynda froze at the question. "You just mentioned that name." Lynda looked at her and sighed.

"You know what? I really don't know why I feel so comfortable around you. I'll tell you who he is though. Lando Raiein, he's one of the island's best demon hunters. He has grown a huge distaste toward the marines lately." Lynda said sadly with a hint of worry. The air was stale, chilly, and giving off an eerie vibe that was driving Kaiyou insane. "Let's talk inside. You're turning blue." Kaiyou looked at her questioningly until she realized that her teeth were chattering and her legs were shaking.

"Holy roger, when did it get so cold?" Kaiyou replied through a chill wave. "Lynda, aren't you freezing?" Lynda laughed softly as they walked into a small bar. Lynda sat down in front of the bartender and motioned Kaiyou over.

"I'm use to the cold." The bartender put a small cup filled with a brown liquid in front of Kaiyou. She thanked him and took the cup. "I'll show you around town in the morning, since it's really hard to do anything this late." After Kaiyou warmed up, Lynda took her upstairs to a bedroom. "You can use this room for the night. If you need anything I'll be next door." Kaiyou nodded and watched as Lynda disappeared into the bedroom. Kaiyou walked inside and closed the door behind her. The room was scarcely decorated; it only contained a bed and a small rundown nightstand. Kaiyou saw a door on her right and opened it. Inside was a clean bathroom with a tub, toilet, and sink. After inspecting everything, Kaiyou decided that it was extremely late and fell asleep on the bed.

_**Laqueus – Mountain Pass: Betobeto-san**_

A twenty year old male, with brown hair and grey eyes, was moving stealthy through the forest. He was dressed in a black pirate coat, with black pants tucked into his black army boots and a leather belt. The belt had the initials DH engraved. On his left hip was a katana with a pure-black hilt. A strong chilling wind blew through making his coat reveal a dagger that was attached to his left thigh. The dagger had a pure-red hilt with no hand-guard. He was heading toward the location of a sighted demon. He stopped and listened to his surroundings. In the distance, he could hear the sound of footsteps from behind him. He sighed and turned around. Only the dark shadows from the trees greeted him. He was startled from his surroundings when a menacing voice spoke up.

"The demon is close by. I want to taste his blood." He looked down at the katana next to his hip. A frown made its way to his face.

"Myoujou, I'll break you the next time you startle me like that." His voice said with austere toward the katana. Myoujou laughed coldly in return.

"Maybe you should save it for later. The demon is coming at you." Myoujou said sharply. He looked up to see an outline of a humanize figure. He pulled out Myoujou to dodge the attack. "If you aren't careful, he'll rip your head off."

_**Aki no Fuyu – Marine Base**_

Captain Alevin sat behind his desk, while tapping his finger impatiently. The moon was glaring through his window. There was a quick knock and a soldier came in with a den den mushi on a cart.

"Sir, it's a call from headquarters."

"Leave it there and get out." The soldier did it as quickly as he could and disappeared from the room. Alevin picked up the receiver. "Hello, this is Captain Naglfar." A smooth seductive voice answered on the other end, making Alevin almost drop the receiver.

"Naglfar, I heard that the Reaper of Morana is no longer on Aki no Fuyu. What have you been doing?" Her voice was smooth and silky. "I sent you out there to find the Reaper of Morana."

"I've been busy, Rear Admiral Lilura. There was some trouble with the village and I lost sight of the Reaper of Morana. However, I can assure you that the Reaper of Morana is still in North Blue." Alevin replied. He listened as the voice on the other end quietly yelled at her subordinates.

"You better find the Reaper of Morana; otherwise you'll end up as food for the sea kings." The voice said with gentle venom. Alevin hung up the receiver and punched his desk in frustration. The desk cracked under the stress and broke in half.

"Damn desk! Reaper of Morana, you can't escape destiny."

_**Laqueus – Somewhere along the shoreline**_

The figure stood at the edge of the ruins; the smell of blood made him smile hungrily. He turned his head at the sudden noise that came from the trees. A shadow came flying at him ready to attack. He grabbed the shadow by what he would consider the throat and squeezed it slowly. Blood slipped out of the shadow's mouth. No sounds emitted itself from the shadow as it died in his hands. The blood dripped onto his hand, letting go of the shadow he brought his hand to his mouth and licked it off with a blood-thirsty smile.

He walked casually through the ruins like it was a park, every once and awhile looking for something. He picked up a few rocks and threw them away after examination. Whatever it is that he was looking for wasn't to be found. He growled in frustration. The rock that was in his hand crumbled away to dust in his clenched fist.

"Reaper of Morana, where are you?" His airy voice whispered to the trees.

_**Laqueus – Kansei Town**_ __

As the moon traded places with the unseen sun, Kaiyou woke up to the sound of a high-pitched scream. Kaiyou grabbed her pillow and placed it over her head in an attempt to block out the noise. It did nothing to ease the noise. Kaiyou sighed and sat up in bed. Looking at the clock she moaned and comically fell over. The noise from outside was increasing with every passing minute. She laid there staring at the ceiling's stains and cracks. There were yells from a few men outside her window. Kaiyou listened to their argument out of boredom.

"The marines did what?" a loud male voice yelled.

"They burned the ruins. There is nothing left but dust." There was a hopeless feeling in the man's words. Kaiyou tilted her head in confusion.

"Those damn bastards. How could they do that to human lives? They aren't upholders of justice, they're monsters. Worse than the pirates that come here every once in a while." Another male exclaimed. The crowd went into an uproar of agreements. Kaiyou clenched her fists as she continued to listen intently.

"At least those pirates don't burn people's corpses." This time it shocked Kaiyou as it was a female's voice. Her voice was cold and full of venom. "They're more human than those damn marines are." She grabbed anything on the bed to cover out the voices. Kaiyou rolled herself into a ball and tried to block the voices from outside.

"_Mama, when is papa coming home? He said he'll be home before dinnertime." Kaiyou said while looking out the window. Her mother sat on the couch reading a book._

"_He'll come home soon honey. Now come over here so you can read to me." Kaiyou pouted but complied nonetheless. The two spent the next thirty minutes reading next to the fireplace. An urgent knock from the door made both of the occupants jump in surprise. "Kaiyou, stay here." Kaiyou nodded and watched as her mother opened the door. Her mother gasped in surprise. "Mayor, why are you breathing so hard? Do you need some water?" Her mother was about to go get some, when the Mayor's hand stopped her. "Mayor?" His eyes told her to stay. "What happened?"_

"_Pirates came to the village and started acting like they owned the place. It was terrible." The mayor shivered at the memory. "One of the villagers managed to anger them and a fight broke loose."_

Kaiyou shook her head from inside the blankets. She took a peak at the clock and sighed. Five o'clock in the bloody morning. The yells were still happening and it was starting to make Kaiyou want to scream out just to shut them up. A knock at her door made her look up. Lynda came in with an apologetic look. Lynda saw Kaiyou's face and became worried.

"I'm sorry did they wake you up?" Lynda said softly. Kaiyou stared at her with her brow raised. "Ahh, sorry stupid question my bad. Something happened so they're angry again." The voices quieted suddenly making Lynda look out the window. Kaiyou stayed seated on the bed. Lynda stared outside for a few minutes before running out of the room. Kaiyou stared at the window then at the door. She sighed softly to herself before picking herself up, attaching her belt, and walking outside to see what was going on. What greeted her was a crowd full of men and women with pitchforks, hammers, plows, and weapons. She tilted her head to the side and starred. "Raiein…." Kaiyou looked at the man that was standing in the middle of the group. There was blood splattered all over him. His brown hair was soaked with the crimson liquid. His grey eyes dull. The blood was dripping into a puddle at his feet. Lynda shook herself from the shock and went over to him. "Raiein, what happened? Are you injured?"

"I killed that demon like you guys wished. He shouldn't be bothering you anymore." The man said and turned on his heels and walked to a house that was at the end of town. The townspeople celebrated in the death of the demon. Kaiyou looked at the man, known as Raiein; walk slowly as the blood stained the ground. Lynda was standing there with a sad look in her eyes. Kaiyou looked at the scene again and noticed the people's face scrunch up in disgust.

"Finally, we can walk on that mountain pass without worry. Those demons should just stay away if they value their lives." A citizen said loudly. The others agreed wholeheartedly. "Now we just have to deal with those marines." Kaiyou sighed softly and left the crowd to see the town. The eerie feeling was still there and the longer Kaiyou stayed the more it felt like it was eating her up whole.

_**Laqueus – Raiein's House**_

Raiein walked inside and closed his door. He didn't bother with turning on the light. He went to his bathroom and gently put his katana and dagger against the sink. After turning on the shower, he striped the blood soaked clothing and threw them in the basket. Standing in the warm steaming water, Raiein felt his muscles relax.

"You know Raiein that there was an unusual presence in the crowd of townspeople earlier." The menacing voice said with curiosity. Raiein, startled, hit his head against the shower head.

"Damn it, Myoujou! What did I say about startling me?" The katana merely laughed at his master's misfortune. "Why the hell can't you be more like Kishin?"

"That is because he's a damn fallen one, Raiein. There is no other reason." Kishin said with calmness. Myoujou tried to attack Kishin with failure. "Myoujou it is impossible for us to attack each other. For one, we're bound by the same master; two, you and I are in the shape of weapons that don't have legs or arms."

"Kishin, I swear I'll destroy you one of these days." Myoujou replied sharply. Raiein sighed annoyed. Raiein finished washing the blood out of his hair and stepped out. He dried himself up before wrapping the towel around his waist.

"Both of you get along, otherwise I'll feed you to the brat that loves you guys so much." Raiein said back softly. Both of the swords yelled out in protest. Myoujou rattled next to the sink while Kishin stood there annoyed.

"Don't you even think about doing that Raiein. Feed us to that damn brat and I'll kill you after I kill the brat." Kishin whispers harshly. Raiein laughed evilly.

"Then stop annoying the shit out of me. I can only take so much of your damn arguments." Raiein replied. Both of the weapons quieted down, their wielder was in an extremely bad mood. Raiein left them in the bathroom with a smile. He could hear them yelling at him for leaving them there. Raiein pulled on black sweat pants and sat down on his bed. His weapons were screeching and yelling for him to get them out of the bathroom. "Shut up. I'm about ready to pull out the acid." The weapons quieted again and Raiein lay back on his bed. Within mere seconds, Raiein was fast asleep. Being up all day and night was wearing away his mental stability.

_**Laqueus – Marine Base**_

The marines were drunk. There were empty barrels of alcohol everywhere. Some of them were dancing to the soundless music, others were singing to the mumbles. The ranked officers were playing poker fully drunk and half naked. They had partied all night after burning the former town to ashes. The commanding officer was the only sober one in the entire building. He was sitting quietly in his grand office. The office was full of high-class furniture. The only light was being emitted from his table lamp. There was a flicker in the light from the lamp.

"So this is where the Lamia Pirates disappeared to." An airy male voice said. The commanding officer looked up in shock.

"You're…" The figure sat himself down on the couch. "What are you doing here?" The figure laughed menacingly.

"The Reaper of Morana." The commanding officer stood up shocked. "Where is it? It wasn't on Aki no Fuyu." The commanding officer sighed and sat back down.

"It should have been on that island. It has been on that island for nineteen years now." The figure glared at the commanding officer.

"What happened here fifteen years ago? I heard that someone had found out about the Reaper of Morana." His calm venomous voice said. It sent chills down the commanding officer's spine. "I also heard you tried to steal it for yourself around three years ago. Isn't that right now, Former Pirate Captain Walker Bois Roach?" Lieutinent Roach was sweating bullets as the figure list his truths. He was a former pirate captain that turned Marine at the thought of unmeasurable wealth and power.

"How do you know about that?" Roach asked in reply. The figure merely shrugged it off. "It is true that I tried to take it three years ago, and it is also true that fifteen years ago someone had found out about the Reaper of Morana." The figure stood up and walked over to the desk. He put his rosy pale hands on the desk. His stormy-grey eyes turned a bright red as he stared at the captain.

"I'll help myself to the files in the file room, and you'll grant me permission to do so." Lieutenant Roach nodded slowly in response. His eyes glazed over. "Good, now write me the permission slip." Lieutenant Roach took out a sheet of paper that had his stamp on it. He gave permission and signed it. The figure took it and smirked. "Thank you for your cooperation, Former Pirate Captain Walker Bois Roach." The lieutenant blinked a few times and looked around. The figure had disappeared.

"What was I just doing?" The lieutenant asked in confusion.

_**Laqueus – Marine Base – File Room**_

The figure walked silently on the cement floor. His boots made no sound. It was like he was gliding over the ground. The room he was currently in was full of shelves. Books and files were stacked neatly in the shelves. There was a dust layer on the books, evidence that the books and files themselves haven't been touched in an extremely long time. Cobwebs hung in the corners of the room. There was a stale smell from the decaying books. The figure looked through the files.

"Reaper…." He scanned the names and stopped at a box. There was no dust on it. He opened it and saw a key. "Hmm… to where do you belong?" He took the box over to the table and pulled out the papers that lay inside. He flipped through a few of them. He read them quickly and took a few of the sheets. He folded them and stuffed them in his inner coat pocket along with the key. He took a look at the box and saw a small tape. He picked it up and examined it. He smirked at his luck, a small visual den den mushi. He stuck the tape inside and watched the video feed. The date at the bottom was fifteen years ago.

_There was a man with light brown hair and silver eyes standing behind the wall. There was a group of Marines standing in the hallway. They were speaking in quiet voices._

"_I heard that the Lieutenant had finally found what that Rear Admiral Lilura was looking for." The Marine with black hair said. His friends were smiling._

"_What is it? Is it treasure? And where is it?" the friend with a saber said. _

"_I heard them calling it 'The Reaper of Morana,' I heard it was on that Aki no Fuyu. As for if it is treasure or not; I have no clue what that is." The Marine replied quietly. _

"_Reaper? That doesn't exactly sound like treasure. More like a curse or something." The marine with the saber said with fear. The man that overheard it gasped. The marines looked for the sudden sound. They managed to capture the man with brown hair and silver eyes. _

The figure smirked at the footage. "So that was the one who heard about The Reaper of Morana fifteen years ago. Very interesting." The figure returned the unwanted information back to the box. He grinned and took a torch from the wall and threw it at the books, before disappearing once again into air.

_**Laqueus – Kansei Town**_

Kaiyou returned to the bar around eight in the morning. Lynda was serving the tables and waved at her. She waved back and sat down at the counter. The bartender placed a small cup of hot chocolate in front of her. Kaiyou looked at the bartender skeptically. The bartender smiled sincerely. Kaiyou nodded in thanks and sipped it. She watched as the bartender clean the cups. The room was pretty loud for eight in the morning. Kaiyou sighed softly. The people are already drinking this early; no wonder they can't sleep. The door swings open and the crowd quiets. The sounds of footsteps were heard walking up to the counter.

"White Russian." An airy voice said. Kaiyou sipped on her hot chocolate. He sat down a few barstools away.

"Right away, sir." The bartender quickly mixed up the cocktail and slid it to him. "One White Russian." The male had a small smirk on his face. He drank it slowly. It was already half done. There was a tense atmosphere as the crowd was worried.

"You're not savoring that cup at all." Kaiyou said sharply. The man looked over at her. His stormy-eyes pierced her very core. Some of the occupants gasped.

"You don't even look old enough to drink, young lady." His voice was like a menacing song.

"At least I know how to enjoy what I drink." He laughed. Kaiyou gripped her cup.

"You're way too young to tell me how to drink." Kaiyou looked at his appearance in annoyance. He had honey blonde hair that covered his left eye. It was shoulder length that curls out. He had very pointy ears and rosy pale skin that made him stand out. Kaiyou could feel an intimating aura around him.

"You look like you're only twenty-something." He grinned so that Kaiyou could see his pointy canine teeth.

"Oh so you think I'm that young? I'm flattered." He drank the last of his drink and left some beli on the counter. "Keep the change." He walked over to Kaiyou and bend down to her ear. "You shouldn't be too careless, young lady." His voice sent a chill down Kaiyou's spine. He stood straight and walked out of the bar.

"I wonder where he came from? I've never seen him before today." Lynda said to the bartender. The bartender merely sighed in response. "Kaiyou, you shouldn't get into fights with people at bars. Sometimes they're really dangerous people." Kaiyou merely shrugged and finished the last drops of her hot chocolate. "You're going back out?" Kaiyou nodded and stood up. She was about to pay the bartender but he merely shook his head.

"It's fine. Plus a friend of Lynda's gets it on the house." Kaiyou nodded in thanks. Kaiyou stepped out and looked up at the sky. The sun was still covered by the dark grey clouds. Lynda came out after her. Lynda was wearing a light red tank top and black shorts. She smiled gently and motioned Kaiyou along. She told Kaiyou were everything was, from the library to the market. They walked through town all the while Lynda telling her things about how she grew up. Around noon, they finished up the little tour and ended in front of the house that Kaiyou remembered that Raiein went into.

"Lynda, why are we in front of this house?" Kaiyou asked with curiosity. The house was rundown like the rest of the town.

"I have an appointment with someone here. I want you to meet them." Lynda said absently. Kaiyou looked at the door as it opened. A woman with brown hair and black eyes came out with a smile on her face.

"Lynda! I'm so glad you made it." She saw Kaiyou. "Ah Lynda, who is this young little lady?" Lynda smiled brightly.

"She's Aeris Kaiyou, a traveler that arrived here late last night. I thought you'd like to meet her." Lynda turned to Kaiyou. "Kaiyou, this is Lando Sena, Raiein's mother." She smiled and invited the two of them inside. Kaiyou looked at the room. It was even least furnished then the inn she was in.

"I'm sorry about the house. There is little I can do. The town does not approve of demon hunters, even though they ask them to help with exterminating the demons." Sena said kindly.

"Isn't that mean? Why not ignore the townspeople then?" Kaiyou asked with a hint of curiosity laced into her words.

"Because, it is our job to have the demons exterminated. I don't harm the harmless demons though." Kaiyou spun around and saw the owner of the voice. He was shirtless and dressed in only his black sweat pants. His hair was all messy like he had just woken up. Kaiyou looked at his eyes and noticed that the dullness was lighter than it was earlier that morning. "You must be the ones they were talking about."

"They?" Kaiyou asked.

"Myoujou and Kishin, the annoying idiots." He replied. Kaiyou looked at him before looking at Sena. "Mother mind telling me why Lynda is here?" Sena smiled softly.

"I invited her over for lunch. Plus I haven't seen her in so long." Raiein looked at his mother exasperated. He sighed softly under his breath.

"Alright, what did you want for lunch again?" Raiein asked. Kaiyou looked around her worried.

"I'm I intruding?" Raiein was about to answer when his mother interrupted him.

"Of course not Ms. Aeris, does it look that way?" Kaiyou nodded. "It's fine. You're not a bother at all. And Raiein I just need you to make your salad." Raiein went over to the fridge and pulled out a few ingredients. Sena and Lynda sat down at the table and started talking. Kaiyou watched Raiein work quickly and efficiently. The way he carried the kitchen knife fascinated her. It was no hesitations or doubts in his grip. He managed to make the salad in merely five minutes. He put it into four bowls and brought them to the table. There was a nice quiet atmosphere; there was no need to rush or anything. Kaiyou looked at Raiein while she ate her meal. He didn't seem like a bad person, so why did the people treat him with disgust. Raiein looked at her.

"I'm hated because I'm a Demon Hunter. I'm the only few who can sense and see them when they hid themselves." Kaiyou looked at him shocked…could he hear her thoughts? "No I can't, it's written with your expressions." Kaiyou looked at him disbelieving. "I can tell by your subtle muscle twitches. If you can read those then it is easy to read demons."

"But you…." He smiled softly which earned him a gasp from Lynda.

"Lynda don't even think about bringing it up." Raiein said without the smile. Kaiyou looked at the two of them confused. Sena chuckled softly.

"It's because Raiein rarely smiles, Ms. Aeris." Kaiyou nodded and finished her meal. She helped Sena by cleaning the dishes and putting them away after drying them. "Thank you, Ms. Aeris. I really should have stopped you from cleaning them."

"No it's fine. It's only polite to share the duty." Sena laughed softly. "Plus, I'll feel bad if I had just eaten and left a mess for you to clean up." Raiein was sitting on the couch with his weapons on the table. There was a frown on his face, and his eyes were closed. "Um… Ms. Lando, is there something wrong with your son?"

"Ahh, this might sound ridiculous but Raiein can hear his weapons' voices. Every time he has them around he's usually like that. Thank you for your help." Sena said without thought. Sena and Lynda went to work on something that Kaiyou could not understand. Kaiyou went over to where Raiein was, and sat down on the ground. Raiein grunted at the swords. Kaiyou looked at the interaction with curiosity.

"I told you that I sensed someone with an unusual presence. Raiein it's your fault! Had you listened to me then this wouldn't have happened." Myoujou said angrily.

"Then what wouldn't have happened?" Kaiyou asked dumbfounded. Raiein opened his eyes startled. Myoujou quieted himself in surprise. "Um…."

"You can hear them?" Raiein asked with a hint of surprise. Kaiyou nodded slowly and poked Myoujou. Myoujou immediately tried to harm her. Raiein picked up the katana and dropped it as gently as he could. Myoujou scowled in annoyance. "I thought I was the only one who could hear their annoyingness."

"I guess not. I was taught to listen to the voices. My father was a blacksmith so he taught me in his free time. I was told it was something called the Language of the Swords."

"Language of the Swords? My father spoke of it a few times. He said that knowing what the swords were thinking was a pain in the ass." Kaiyou giggled softly. "I understand what he means now. They're a total pain in the ass," his weapons rattled in protest, "however; it is truly a gift to be able to hear them. It makes my life way easier."

"I see. I can tell that he," Kaiyou pointed at Myoujou, "gives you tons of problems. He just radiates the aura saying 'I hate you, and I'll make your life miserable." Raiein laughed loudly.

"I'm amazed that you could tell that." Raiein said while picking up Myoujou. "He's more annoying than Kishin, but hell he is one amazing demon katana."

"Do you mind if I ask what your father use to do?" Kaiyou asked with interest. Raiein looked up at the ceiling quietly before looking at Kaiyou.

"I don't know. Father never spoke about what he did before he married my mother. He was very persistent with the fact that he hated the world government with a passion."


	12. Blackroot Pirates Chapter 2 Part 2

Disclaimer: We do not own One Piece in anyway.

_Laqueus – The Marines' Attack? Or Was It Pirates?_

_Fifteen years ago - The man with brown hair and silver eyes was taken to an interrogating room. There were handcuffs around his wrists. Inside of the room there wasn't the table and chair like most interrogating rooms. The room had a metal table in the middle and cabinets that lined the walls. They lay the man on the table and strapped him down. The ranked officer walked in. The marines all saluted sloppily. _

"_Lieutenant Roach, we've brought the intruder. What should we do with him?" The marine with the saber said. The Lieutenant smiled evilly. _

"_I'll handle it personally. Now leave me and the intruder alone." They saluted and left the room. The man was trying to get out of the straps. "If I remember correctly, you're Reigh, former Spyro Pirate." Reigh merely laughed at the name._

"_It's been a long time since anyone has called us that. I was sure that the ones that knew of us were long gone, Former Pirate Captain Walker Bois Roach." He grinned, "You went even lower than I did."_

"_Don't mock me, Reigh! I'm still a pirate. You will tell me what you heard."_

"_It doesn't matter. The Reaper of Morana will never fall into Marine hands, as long as it is protected."_

_**Laqueus – Burned Marine Base**_

Lieutenant Roach stood at the ruins of the marine base. He was careless, there was something off and he totally disregarded it. He must be getting rusty from doing very little pirating in the past three years. Last time he was pirating was just out of boredom of his marine job. That was the first and the last time he tried being a Pirate and a Marine soldier at the same time. Rear Admiral Lilura was furious with him. He shivered at the memory that passed through his head. Returning his thoughts to the scene in front of him, he felt his blood boil with poison.

"It must be that damn Demon Hunter's doing. He's exactly like that man fifteen years ago." Lieutenant Roach said as he walked through the ruins as his men cleaned up the mess. The file room was the worse off since it was where the fire started. "He must have snuck in here like that man did. Damn it. I thought I had finally got rid of those damn Spyro Pirates that were here in North Blue." Lieutenant Roach sighed annoyed and punched an already broken wall. "I'll get you, Demon Hunter!"

_**Laqueus – Outskirts of Fallen Caves**_

The figure glided over the ground toward the caves. He had heard that the beast had taken a liking to the caves, and decided to make it home. The trees were scorched black, and the smell of rotting animals made the figure hurry along the path. He could stand the smell of rotting humans, but rotting animals was just disgusting to him. The mouth to the caves was enormous. The ice from the ceiling was dripping with water, most likely due to the beast's heat. The ground was wet from all of the melted ice. He glided inside and saw that the cave was glowing with an unusual light. He smirked as he saw what the beast did with the inside. There was blood all over the walls to the cave. The human sacrifices were locked away in a cage. He sat on a rock and waited for the beast to finish his meal.

"Are you done yet?" the figure asked, his airy voice made the prisoners squeak out in fear. The beast turned over to him and smiled.

"Yes, I'm done. It has been way too long. Have you found what you were looking for?" The beast's voice was loud and harsh sounding. The figure merely shook his head. The prisoners gasped at the figure's appearance.

"He's so young." One of them whispered from the corner of the cage. The beast kicked the cage and quieted them down.

"Looks like you have a group of fan girls." The figure merely grunted with annoyance. The beast laughed at the figure's discomfort. "It's been a while since you've been uncomfortable. I can presume you haven't found it."

"The Reaper of Morana, very few people knows what it looks like. In fact, even I'm not sure what it looks like. I have a feeling that the Rear Admiral Lilura knows what it looks like."

"Then you should go and meet this Rear Admiral." The beast said in return. The figure laughed softly.

"I'm in no rush. Plus, I like taking things easy."

_**Laqueus – Kansei Town**_

Raiein was polishing his dagger and katana, when he noticed that Kaiyou was sitting against the wall with her eyes closed. She had become very quiet and still since the end of their conversation. Looking at her made him wonder what she was hiding from the world. He realized that throughout the entire conversation he was the only one that answered questions. She managed to completely evade all of his questions.

"Raiein, you should poke her." Myoujou said bored. Raiein fell off of the couch at Myoujou's voice. Raiein growled under his breath.

"Myoujou…." His voice was full of venom and annoyance. "How many times do I have to tell you, DON'T FREAK'N STARTLE ME!" He was pretty much yelling by the end. Myoujou snickered at his wielder happily at his entertainment.

"Will you two just shut the hell up? You're going to wake her up." Kishin said calmly. Raiein looked over at her again realized that she was still sleeping. Kishin sighed. "You're both lucky that it looks like she's a heavy sleeper."

"Kishin…"

"Leave me out of it Myoujou. I'm not helping you tease Raiein." The three of them ended up bickering. If they were people and if Kaiyou was awake; she'd be rolling on the floor laughing. It would have been like a small catfight. They would have gotten tangled by each other's limbs. Kaiyou opened one eye at them. It was quite funny looking at Raiein yell at his weapons. Kaiyou was sort of half-awake when Raiein yelled to Myoujou the first time. She returned to her little nap.

"Raiein? Aren't you being a little too loud?" Lynda said at the doorway. She was leaning against the frame with a frown. Raiein sighed and calmed himself down. "What did your idiot of weapons do this time?"

"Be annoying." Lynda's eyes widened in surprise, and then she fell into a fit of laughter. Raiein looked at her annoyed. "What the hell, Lynda?"

"Who would have thought, that the scary Demon Hunter is easily annoyed by his own two weapons?" Lynda said with the laughter still in her throat.

"Oh, shut up Lynda. You can't even hear their…irgh! Damn it." Raiein looked at his two weapons evilly. "Shut the hell up! I'm about a prick away from dropping that acid on you both." The two weapons stopped moving and laid still. "Finally; anyway, where did my mother go?"

"She said she was going to be outside looking for some herbs." Raiein sat back into the couch that he had just got back on. Kaiyou looked at the two of them quietly. Raiein's eyes had regained their shine that wasn't there earlier that morning.

"Raiein, your eyes are interesting." Kaiyou said bluntly. Raiein startled at her voice jumped a little. Lynda was scared through her skin. They both looked over at Kaiyou shocked.

"Wha…" Raiein barely registered the statement. Kaiyou giggled at their expressions.

"Your eyes were dull this morning, now they shine brightly." Raiein sighed at Kaiyou's statement.

"You're one of the few that aren't afraid of them." Kaiyou looked at him dumbfounded. "My grey eyes are really scary to many of the folks. Which I don't understand, considering my father had them too." Raiein noticed her look of curiosity. "My eyes are usually dull when killing demons. It takes about half a day for them to return to normal."

"I like them." Kaiyou replied softly before standing up. "I'll be going now. I need to get my bag and do some shopping." Kaiyou walked out of the house with a wave. Raiein sat there looking at Lynda with a blank look.

"She is so difficult to understand." Raiein said quietly. Lynda shrugged.

"You seem to understand her without her speaking." Lynda responded.

Outside, Kaiyou was casually walking back to the bar. The town was still as lively as ever. It amazed her that these people were the ones that use to live in the towns on the shores. Kaiyou entered the bar and went up to her temporary room. She grabbed, and shouldered it. She went to the market and looked at the items on sale. Nothing caught her attention. Kaiyou looked up when she felt the air change. Looking around, Kaiyou felt worried, something was going to happen. Suddenly there was a small cry. The townspeople looked around for the sound. Kaiyou looked down the street and saw a Marine holding a little girl roughly. There was a crazy smile on his face.

"Let the child go!" One of the townswomen screamed; she was quieted when the entire marine force stood behind him. Kaiyou glanced at the commanding officer and to the little girl. The girl had tears in her eyes from fear.

"Men, you know the plan." They all yelled with enthusiasm. The marines started shooting the people and burning the town. The commanding officer pointed the gun to the child's head. Kaiyou felt her blood boil with anger. The commanding officer didn't understand what happened as he felt a strong wind blow pass him. His gun was sliced into two. "What the hell just happened?"

"How can you do this to them?" Kaiyou yelled out. Her hands were already holding onto her daggers. "You're monsters!" Lieutenant Roach was watching from the back. He looked at her and felt shock consume him.

"She looks like that man… that can't be…." Lieutenant Roach whispered under his breath. He suddenly remembered a memory.

_Three years ago on the island of Aki no Fuyu, the clouds were covering the sun and the winds were blowing strongly. A huge ship with a jolly roger docked at the docks. The Captain of the group walked in front while his crew was behind him. Lancer was selling the things he forged in the market and minding his own business. One of the villagers accidently walked into the Captain. The Captain immediately grabbed the villager's collar._

"_You dare run into me?" The Captain said mercilessly. Lancer looked up and at the commotion. The Captain took out his gun and pointed it at the villager's head. "I don't take lightly to people who run into me." He smirked evilly. "I can't wait to kill you, after I find what I'm looking for." The Captain turned to the market place. "Anyone here know about the Reaper of Morana? I'm looking for it." Lancer bit the inside of his mouth. "I know it's here on this island." The villagers all whispered about; unsure what the Reaper of Morana was. "If you won't answer, I'll kill this man." _

"_You'll kill him either way. You said it yourself, Pirate!" A villager yelled out. Lancer sighed annoyed at their incompetence. Lancer moved his hand to his back pocket and pulled out a dagger. _

Kaiyou attached her chains to the daggers. The marines focus their attack on her. They have her surrounded by the hundreds. Kaiyou lets her daggers touch the ground as she holds onto the chains. She widens her stance and takes a deep breath. She starts swinging the daggers by the chain. The marines step back frightened.

"What are you men doing? She's merely a girl. Attack her!" The commanding officer yelled. Lieutenant Roach frowned; she was not in his plans. She springs the dagger toward an unsuspecting marine. It hits his arm in the bicep; she pulls the dagger back gracefully.

"Odori no Ken – Hasu.1" Kaiyou murmurs as she spins the daggers gracefully at the crowd of marines. Blood sprays from their wounds. Each of the injured marines has a lotus image imprinted where their wound bleeds. Lieutenant Roach pulled out his cutlass. He stealthy walks up to Kaiyou wanting to inflict a killing blow. He brings the cutlass down in a powerful swing. Kaiyou turns too slow and comes face to face with the sword…. It never reaches its intended target. Kaiyou looks at the broad back that is in front of her. His short brown hair was flowing in the wind. Kaiyou felt an intense killer intent coming from Raiein, which surprised her. Kishin was in his right hand and blocking the cutlass. "What?"

"Focus, otherwise they'll kill you. These marines are not what you think they are. These guys are all former pirates. The Lamia Pirates, to be exact, are led by Captain Roach. Or what the town likes to call him, Lieutenant Roach." Raiein spitted out with a hint of anger. When Kaiyou heard the name of the pirates, she almost spaced out in remembrance. She gripped her chains tightly.

"Raiein move." Raiein jumped out of her range and watched as she spun her daggers at a dangerously fast speed. Raiein blinked a few times; Kaiyou suddenly look like a reaper. Her golden eyes had hints of red in them. "Pirate Walker Bois Roach, prepare to meet you're end." Lieutenant Roach smirked.

"I highly digress, girl. You cannot beat me." Raiein pulled out Myoujou and walked silently to the remaining pirates with a smile. "I will triumph. I won't lose to someone that looks exactly like that man!" Kaiyou tilted her head to the side. Roach dodged an attack to his side with bringing his cutlass up.

"Odori no Ken – Fuzei Suingu.2" Kaiyou aimed her daggers toward him. The sound of air getting cut resounded as they flew. One of the daggers wrapped around Roach's cutlass. Roach realized that the attack was amplified by the air that wrapped itself around the daggers. His cutlass broke in half; a shard of the blade flew into his right eye. Roach could barely recognize that the second dagger was coming right for his arm.

Raiein was enjoying his time with the grunts. Myoujou was laughing excitedly at the amount of blood he was able to taste. Kishin was relaxing in his sheath. "Oni no Ken – Fujin Dageki.3" A massive wind was created with his one swing. The pirates screamed out in pain. Some of them had their legs amputated, while others had their arms. There were few that were left unscratched. Myoujou started shaking in Raiein's hand. Raiein turned quickly and stabbed a pirate right through the right lung. "Don't get in my way." Raiein's voice was full of austere and venom. He pulled out Myoujou and swung the blood off. "What do you think of the carnage Myoujou? Does it satisfy you?" Myoujou laughed sinisterly.

"Why… of course not, you know I love the taste of blood." Myoujou said menacingly. Raiein sighed and looked at the next pirate that came running at him.

"I guess you need a laugh. Allow me to do the pleasures. Oni no Ken – Banafrit.4" The pirate that was unlucky enough to get slashed by the attack stopped in his tracks. Raiein watched as the pirate looked at himself with stars in his eyes. Myoujou started sniggering at the pirate. Raiein watched with amusement. The pirate was yelling in a very high pitched voice.

"Someone give me a mirror! I think I have a stain in my hair! I need to make sure my make-up isn't smeared." The pirate's allies looked at him with shock.

"What the hell?" Another pirate yelled out at the display. "What did you do to him?" Raiein smiled evilly.

"Only what he needed which was to slow down and look at his appearance. I serious think he needs to make sure his make-up isn't messed up." Raiein responded. Myoujou was still laughing at the pirate's beauty comments. "Oh but don't worry he should be back to normal in ten minutes or less."

"We'll kill you for mocking us!" The pirates all started lunging at him. Raiein could feel Myoujou smirking happily. Raiein looked at the amount of pirates left and smiled.

"I'll finish this with one last attack." Raiein shook Myoujou, until the sword had a golden light emitting from it. "Oni no Ken – Shen Ryuu.5" The pirates all scrambled to get away from the dragon that formed. It ran the pirates over and disperses. Myoujou laughed at the now injured or unconscious pirates.

"That was nice Raiein. Thanks for the meal." Myoujou whispered ominously. Raiein simply nodded and sheathed him; turning his attention toward Kaiyou's fight. He couldn't believe how graceful she looked when in combat. Her eyes were different than before. "Raiein… you sure you ain't going to help her?" Raiein nodded. Kaiyou had blood dripping down her left check. She was extremely focused, which managed to make Raiein wonder why she was so out of it when she wasn't in battle. Roach on the other hand was much worse for wear. His right arm was bleeding heavily and there was a huge gash going down his side.

"Must have been an attack from Kaiyou." Raiein muttered. Roach was also limping; his gun in his left hand. Roach aimed his gun at her. Kaiyou eyed him looking for the small twitch that would show her his move. A muscle twitch and the bullet flew. She turned her body to the side and it grazed her right side. She barely even cringed at the pain.

"You're out of bullets." Kaiyou said emotionlessly. "And your cutlass is broken in half. What will you now?"

"I'll kill you with my hands." He said with venom. "I must erase you. You look too similar to that man."

"Who are you talking about?" Kaiyou asked.

"Pirate Captain of the Spyro Pirates, I managed to get rid of his two underlings." Roach said austerely. "They who protect the Reaper of Morana in North Blue have been killed. Fifteen years ago, I killed a man named Reigh, and three years ago I killed a man named Lancer. They were protectors of the Reaper of Morana. I don't know what it looks like, but I'll get my hands on it." Kaiyou sheathed one of her daggers. In one hand she was holding onto the dagger's handle, and in the other; she was holding onto the chain. There was blood dripping gradually to the ground. Her hands were drenched red by the liquid. Raiein froze when he heard the name Reigh. He felt his blood turn cold as he looked at Roach with resentment.

"You, I will never forgive." Kaiyou whispered bitterly as she processed her father's name. "I hope you have fun in hell Pirate Walker Bois Roach. Odori no Ken – Shinigami.6" The dagger lodged itself inside of Roach's heart. Roach grabbed the dagger. "I wouldn't pull it out if I were you." Kaiyou said without remorse. "The gut hook will deal more damage if you do." Raiein looked at the attack with awe. He had never seen someone attack with such fluidity.

"You're a monster." Roach whispered as he fell over lifeless. Kaiyou pulled the dagger back and unhooked the chain. Raiein walked over to her. Her eyes were clouded over; spaced out again.

"_What happened Mayor?" Kaiyou's mother asked worried. Kaiyou sat quietly on the couch with her head tilted in curiosity. _

"_Mana, I'm so sorry. Lancer… he's dead. The pirates killed him when he was trying to protect the village." The mayor moved closer toward Mana and whispered into her ear. "They were looking for the Reaper of Morana." Mana stood frozen to her spot. She felt tears coming to her eyes. She blinked them away, stubbornly. Mana politely stopped the Mayor and turned toward Kaiyou. _

"_Kaiyou, honey, can you please go and study upstairs? Mama has to talk privately with the mayor." Mana said softly. Kaiyou nodded and climbed off the couch and ran upstairs. "Please come in and make yourself comfortable." The mayor walked in and sat down in the armchair. Mana sat on the couch after bringing some tea over._

"_You and Kaiyou are no longer safe here. I suggest you take Kaiyou and leave. They've already killed Reigh. There is no one else here in North Blue who can protect you both. It's only a matter of time before they know exactly where the Reaper of Morana is."_

"_I have nowhere else to go, Mayor. This is the only place left. I'll protect it even if it costs me my life."_

"Kaiyou?" Raiein said gently as she sheathed a bloodless dagger. "Are you alright?" She looked up at him and sighed softly.

"Yeah, I'm just tired that's all." Kaiyou turned to look at the carnage around her. "Ahh this is familiar…."

"Familiar?" Raiein inquired with interest.

"I was called a demon back home. There was little blood though. It wasn't even people that died." Kaiyou said without second thought. Raiein looked at the girl in front of him. She looked so fragile and weak, and yet she was hard to break and strong.

"From what I see, you're nothing like a demon. Why did they call you that?" Raiein watched as she merely shook her head refusing to answer. "You don't have to tell me. We should clean this mess up." The townspeople were all hiding inside the buildings. They were staring in awe at the display of violence. The townspeople were disgusted at the people that pretended to be marines. They fell for the trick created by the pirates. Raiein started cleaning up the mess. He moved the dead bodies to one side and the alive bodies to another side tied up. Kaiyou helped him drag the pirates into piles. A hand grabbed her ankle; she glanced down at the owner. His eyes were glazed over and he was having trouble breathing.

"Please…kill me…." Kaiyou bent down next to the pirate. She looked at the wounds and digged through her bag for a small pill that she made the pirate swallow it. The pirate immediately fell unconscious after a few minutes. The pill would make dying less painful. She sighed and brought the pirate to the middle; a small photo fell out of his pocket. Kaiyou's curiosity got the better of her and she picked it up. In the photo was a beautiful young lady with light red hair and blue eyes. She was smiling brightly and if Kaiyou looked carefully; she could see the pirate in the girl's eyes.

"Raiein!" Kaiyou yelled loudly; Raiein jumped at her loud gentle voice. He turned to face her with a questioning expression. "Is there a doctor here?"

"You want to save one of them?" Raiein inquired stunned. Kaiyou nodded. Raiein nodded at the look in her clouded eyes. "Fine, don't ask me to help you if he attacks you." Raiein ran off to get the doctor. It took over a few hours for the two of them to finish cleaning up their mess. The pirates that were still alive were constantly being watched by the townspeople. The doctor managed to save the pirate that Kaiyou was worried about. Raiein was still interested into why she decided to save the man. "So what made you decide to save that one pirate?"

"There's someone waiting for him to come back." Raiein looked over at Kaiyou. "He can go back."

"You're being naïve. He's a pirate therefore he'll return to it. He won't go back to the one who's waiting for him." Raiein said skeptically.

"You don't know that!" Kaiyou retorted angrily. Raiein was shocked at her anger. "He deserves a chance to change."

"And how would you know if he already had a few hundred chances?" Raiein said back calmly. Kaiyou sighed and starred at him.

"It would be his second chance from me." Kaiyou replied softly. She looked toward the sky. A drop of water landed on her right check. Raiein observed around at the sudden downpour of rain. Raiein could feel a wave of mystery wash over the girl that was standing in front of him.

"Come on, let's go inside. You'll catch a cold if you're out here for too long." Raiein said walking toward the bar that Lynda and Sena were waiting. The blood slowly washed away from her hands. Kaiyou stood there a few minutes longer before slowly treading her way to the bar. When she opened to door, she was thrown back onto the ground by a little girl. Kaiyou looked at the girl in confusion, before remembering that this was the girl that she had saved.

"Thank you so much for saving me! I was really scared!" The little girl said appreciatively and smiled. Kaiyou noticed her sun-burned hair and stunning green eyes. "You're really cool big sis."

"Big sis?" Kaiyou mumbled at the strangeness of being called by such a nickname. Raiein was sitting at the counter with Sena and Lynda. He looked at the two of them. Myoujou snickered loudly and Raiein dropped his glass. Raiein looked at his katana evilly. Lynda merely giggled at the two scenes. "You're welcome. I'm just glad that you weren't hurt." The two of them smiled. Kaiyou stood up and walked over to Raiein. "What happened here?"

"I swear I'll destroy Myoujou with acids one of these days." Raiein responded annoyed. "That damn idiot doesn't understand what it means to stop." Raiein glanced at her. "What are you going to do now?"

"Do you know who Reigh is?" Raiein's eyes darkened at the mention of the name. Kaiyou observed him carefully.

"Reigh was my late father. He had a huge dislike to the World Government. I guess it makes sense now that I know he was a former pirate." Sena, who was listening to the conversation, looked down at her drink sadly. Raiein turned his head toward his mother. "Did you know he was a former pirate?"

"Yes." Sena replied softly. "I knew that your father was a pirate. We had our secrets, but we knew each other's greatest secret. For your father it was being a former pirate; as for me… I use to be a bartender in the Grand Line with some of the greatest connections." Kaiyou looked up at the mention of Grand Line. "I met your father in the Grand Line. He was the first mate to the Spyro Pirates."

"No wonder he was so strong. Being first mate has to be more than just a title." Lynda gasped out. Sena laughed sadly.

"Yes, he always told me that he had to protect the Reaper of Morana. I really don't know what that is though." Sena pointed out bluntly. The bartender smiled as he brought out a small cake for Kaiyou.

"Enjoy." The bartender started speaking to the group. "Reigh told me that the Spyro Pirates disbanded because of the desire to keep the Reaper of Morana safe. The thing is that the Spyro Pirates themselves don't know where the rest of the group is. Reigh only knew that Lancer was in North Blue."

"Then Raiein, let's go and find these Spyro Pirates!" Myoujou said with a hint of bloodlust in his voice. Raiein was so startled that he hit his head on light fixture. Lynda and Sena looked at him worried, while Kaiyou merely blinked at Raiein's sudden movement.

"Myoujou! That is it! Where is that damn acid when I need it?" Raiein murmured angrily. Myoujou snickered at his master's discomfort. Kishin sat quietly listening to the two of them.

"Myoujou, I suggest you stop startling him if you wish to never feel that acid burn through you." Kishin replied when they were getting a little too loud for his ears (that he did not have). Kaiyou giggled at their antics. The three quieted and Raiein looked at Kaiyou. Her eyes were back to their normal shiny self.

"So what will you do Raiein? You've exterminated every demon that ever existed on this island." Myoujou replied.

"No, I still have one last one to exterminate; that monster that destroyed our towns next to the shore." Raiein spoke sharply. Kaiyou looked out of the window and watched the rain fall. There was an eerie quietness after Raiein spoke.

"You can't defeat him." Kaiyou said bluntly after a few minutes of silence. Raiein stood up annoyed.

"What the hell do you mean I can't defeat him?" Sena and Lynda tried to calm him down. Kaiyou looked over at him. Her gaze pierced through his soul.

"I'm afraid that Myoujou won't be able to withstand the beast's attacks. The amount of damage that I saw down there; isn't something that Myoujou can handle." Raiein was about to retort in defense of his katana, that was shaking with anger, when Kaiyou stopped him. "I'm not saying that you or your katana is weak. I'm saying that the metal used to infuse Myoujou to, is not strong enough for you to exterminate such a monster. This evaluation is from a blacksmith's view; therefore if you want try to eradicate the monster, I won't stop you. Just know that the consequences would be your katana breaking."

"Are you saying that Myoujou won't last much longer?" Raiein said while sitting back down in his chair.

"If he'll just let me look at him without him attacking me, I could tell you an approximate answer to your question."

"Like I'll let you touch me! I can barely stand this master of mine to touch me." Myoujou yelled in defense. Kaiyou merely put her hands up in defeat, before picking up the plate with the small cake and dropping the cake whole into her mouth. Raiein looked at her surprised.

"What the… do you have like a big mouth or something?" Kaiyou laughed softly.

"Nope." Myoujou rested quietly for a few minutes before rattling in Raiein's hands.

"Raiein, as much as I hate to admit it, but she has made a strong point. I'm not strong enough to attack a monster like that. You would need a very carefully craft sword of the finest grade to defeat that monster." Myoujou admitted, Kishin gasped in shock.

"Who the hell are you? What did you do to Myoujou?" Kishin exclaimed. Myoujou merely grunted annoyed.

"Myoujou for you to actually admit something like that, how much pride did you swallow?" Raiein inquired with interest. Kaiyou smirked as she rested her head on her propped hands. Myoujou thrashed about in Raiein's hand.

"Oh shut the hell up! What are you going to do now?" Myoujou yelled in attempt to change the topic.

"I'm not going to answer you until you give me an answer." Raiein pointed out. Myoujou muttered curses under his breath.

"Fine! I swallowed a damn lot of it. Now tell me what are you going to do?" Myoujou answered reluctantly. Raiein merely sneered at Myoujou.

"I'll tell you later. I need to think about it." Myoujou yelled with annoyance. Sena, Lynda, and the bartender watched with amusement. Kaiyou sighed gently and glanced down at the hot chocolate that was in her hands.

"I'm really grateful for all you've done for me while I was here, but I really think it's time I move on." Kaiyou whispered softly. Sena looked over at Kaiyou worried.

"It's already so late. You're not planning on leaving tonight are you? At least say here for the night." Sena's motherly instincts were kicking in. Lynda nodded quickly and tried to persuade her to stay. Kaiyou nodded slowly and smiled weakly. Raiein watched as Kaiyou dismissed herself and walked upstairs to the room she was using earlier. "Raiein, what do you want to do now?" Raiein looked at his mother, who was smiling gently at him. "I don't mind if you want to leave. I'll manage with life here. That way you'll be able to have a place to always come home to."

"Mother, there isn't a reason for me to really leave."

"Lies! You want to find the weapon that will be strong enough to kill that monster." Sena reprehend him for his stubbornness. "You're very similar to your father. It drives me insane sometimes." Lynda chuckled at his expression.

"Maybe you should ask Kaiyou to let you go with her?" Lynda proposed.

"I don't know. She seems like such a mystery." Raiein replied and took a sip of his drink.

"She interests you though. Raiein, you shouldn't stay here all of your life. Travel the world and learn for yourself what the world has to offer." Sena offered quietly.

"I'll just sleep on it." Raiein replied softly. "It's late like you two said. I'm going home." Raiein stood up and strolled out the door. Sena sighed sadly as she nursed her drink.

"Sena, are you really sure you can let him go?" the bartender asked gently. Sena nodded and drank the entire cup.

"It's time he worried about his own future." Lynda stood up and dismissed herself. Sena smiled at her as she left. "I'm worried that he's always going to worry about me."

"You can't blame him, Sena. He had to grow up earlier than most of the boys his age." The bartender cleaned the cups.

"Why did you tell them about the Reaper of Morana?" The bartender looked up and smiled gently.

"I just have a feeling that the two of them will unravel what the Reaper of Morana is."

_**Laqueus – Safe Shore, Four o'clock in the Morning**_

Kaiyou was loading the few supplies that the townspeople gave her. The day had barely started and she had been awake since two. Kaiyou really didn't know why she was in such a rush, she just needed to leave and go back out to sea. She was just about to push her boat into the water when she heard her name being yelled. Kaiyou turned around and saw Lynda, Sena, the bartender, and Raiein. Raiein had a bag over his shoulder. Kaiyou walked over curious.

"What are you guys doing here?"

"Isn't that simple, we're seeing you off." Lynda replied with a smile. Sena nodded sadly.

"Then why is Raiein here with a bag? Don't tell me you want to come along?" Kaiyou questioned, but before anyone could answer her, she spoke up. "You can come along. I would truly enjoy some company." Raiein stood there before eyeing at Kaiyou in the eyes.

"I have a mission."

"I got no problems with that. A man's got to do what a man's got to do. I won't stop you." Kaiyou said seriously. Raiein smirked and looked toward the group that was staying.

"Thanks for all you've done. I'll be going now." Sena nodded and kissed him on the forehead.

"Take care of yourself, and don't worry about me. I have people here who will help me." Raiein nodded and walked to the boat. Kaiyou was already standing on the boat.

"You push the boat into the water." Kaiyou commanded softly. There was a small smile on her face. Raiein smirked at her attitude.

"You have one crazy personality, you know that?"

"Haha thanks. I like to KISS." Kaiyou said without a care in the world. Raiein almost fell over at her statement. Sena and Lynda looked at her surprised. The bartender just smiled.

"Wha…." Kaiyou just looked at him with a smirk. There was a light sparkle of playfulness in her golden eyes. Raiein pushed the boat into the water and got on.

"KISS; Keep It Simple Stupid." She chuckled as she walked into the cabin.

A/N: Hey Readers! This is KairaKara101 here!

I really hope you guys are enjoying the Blackroot Pirates so far. All of the attacks are translated below. I will continue to do it this way. I also want to apologize in advance for the slowness in which the chapters will be coming out; since I'm starting school again, and I fear that I won't be able to write as much as I would like. Other than that, I (we) would really appreciate some reviews/feedback on how we're doing. Thank you for taking the time to read our fanfiction. ~ KairaKara101

Translations of the attacks:

Sword Dance – Lotus

Sword Dance – Air Swing

Demon Sword – Fujin's Strike

Demon Sword – Beautiful Soul

Demon Sword – Dragon Spirit

Sword Dance – God of Death


	13. Rift Pirates Chapter 2

Disclaimer: We do not own One Piece in any way!

A/n: Well, it took several months and a Sorus Chapter, but here it is! The next installment of the adventures of Brizan, Orrahn and Bert! I would really like to thank Oggytheogre321 (Sorus's beta reader) and Rose 'ire Trinity (The Rift's beta reader) for helping me with the flow and editing of the chapter! It would be cool if our readers could check out their stories as well.

Oggytheogre321- One Piece New Nakama series

Rose 'ire Trinity- Jolly Rogers and the Seagulls of Justice

**Reviews are greatly appreciated!**

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><p><span>What Sort of Figurehead is a Weasel Neck Anyways?<span>

By: Orrahn

Somewhere: South Blue

Dreary skies cast over the Moon Goddess as Brizan gazed into the misty ocean. "Ugh, this ocean is stupid," Brizan whined as he walked back to the wheel and altered the course slightly.

A loud splash erupted from the ocean followed by a thunderous thump, a massive fishman had arrived on board, snazzy suit and all. "Hey guys!" Bert said with a grin to Brizan who was now had his face pressed up against the wheel in an angry slouch and Orrahn who was hanging from the mast by his legs with a huge grin on his face.

"Did you find anything?" Brizan asked, already accepting that they were lost at sea and might as well abandon all hope of salvation. 'If only the map didn't get destroyed…' Brizan thought to himself as he cast his gaze to the bow of the ship and the rocking ocean while he reminisced over what had happened three days before.

Three Days Earlier, Outside Bablyon Island

A cannonball tore through the rim of the ship. "Shit!" Brizan cursed as he sat straight up. In the hour since the left Babylon Island, Brizan had already set a mattress up on deck to steer the ship as needed to finalize the course for the next island while simultaneously slacking off. That was until someone started shooting at them.

"We're gunna sink! We're gunna sink!" Orrahn sung as he danced to the side of the ship they had been hit on and tossed a heavy round into the cannon. The boat rocked as the cannon fired with a BANG!

"Nice miss…" Brizan grumbled as he walked over to Orrahn, knowing full well that they were no good at naval combat. They usually relied on boarding the enemy ship and leaving the current one to sink, though Brizan was not entirely sure if Bert would appreciate that this time. "Oh great, it's the marines…" Brizan commented now that he could see the marine ship circling to the southeast to cut off an escape route.

"Hey guys! Is something going on?" Bert asked in his normal positive personality. As if on cue, a chain shot tore the sails of the ship, causing Bert to frown momentarily before commenting on the issue "Now this isn't good, is it?"

Before Brizan had a chance to respond, a loud yet familiar voice boomed over the ocean. "Attention Soso Brizan 'The Abridged' and company, this is Captain Butterfield from the 64th branch of marines! I am going to give you one more chance to raise your sails, drop your weapons, and raise your hands above your yourselves or we will sink you right here!" Butterfield announced.

"Raise the sails…" Brizan instructed as he looked at Orrahn. "I hope we can find a way out of this…" Brizan sighed.

After raising the sails, Brizan untied his sash and belt, allowing his sword and pistol to fall to the ground. Orrahn simply removed his jacket which made a loud noise as it hit the deck, most likely from all the random things Orrahn used as weapons that he kept stashed in there.

Brizan sighed as he starred at the map that he was planning on following to the next island. There was really no point of holding on to it but speculating escape routes gave the eternal pessimist some sense of hope. Being cut off from the southeast, the most logical way to go would be northwest or else they could easily be cut off or have to turn into fire. Only problem is that their destination would be incredibly predictable as there was only one island in the northwest corner of this ocean and an incredibly primitive one from what Brizan had heard about it. Brizan sighed once more and folded the map up. He could now make up Butterfields features.

"I am glad to see that you guys are so eager to surrender, I'll have you know that we have taken precautions this time, so that it won't go down like the last two times," Butterfield remarked as the gap between the ships lessened further.

"You mean the last four times," Brizan came back in a rather annoyed tone.

A vein appeared on Butterfield's head as he turned purple with anger before finally catching his breath and coming back to his senses. "You are lucky that I will even be kind enough to give you a court trial rather than just shooting you right here." Butterfield seethed as he eyed the deck of the ship. "Hmm, I thought for sure that that monster fishman followed you guys, this is his ship after all."

Brizan and Orrahn looked around the deck too, Bert must have noticed they were screwed and swam away. "Nope, we stole this." Brizan grinned since it was in fact the partial truth.

Butterfield picked up a strange snail-like creature attached to a megaphone and spoke into the shell. "I don't know where you are, fishman, but you are wanted for the murder of a noble and we _will_ find you!"

Just before he had a chance to hang the snail back up, a booming voice answered him, and not from the ocean as expected, but from above. "No need!" Bert said with a smile as he kicked off the heavily reinforced wood rim of the equally reinforced crowsnest of the Moon Goddess. "I am just up here!" He grinned before launching himself into the air, causing the entire mast to shake.

"What the-" Butterfield began as he looked at the massive shape falling for the sky.

"Grab onto the ship guys!" Bert warned, though due to his pleasant attitude, Brizan wasn't entirely sure if he was warning him or the marines. Bert's massive form now began to do a powerful front flip. "OMEGAAAAAAAA," he started to yell as he hung upside down just feet above the ocean with both elbows raised above his head, "WAVE!" he boomed, his body suddenly gaining some sort of boost causing his flip to speed up dramatically so that his legs smashed the water at the same time as his crashing elbows. Things were about to get crazy.

Brizan never moved so quickly in his life, but now was no time to be his usual, slow self. The marines on the other hand, were not about to give up just yet. "Shoot them!" Brizan could hear Butterfield scream as a couple of gunshots echoed as the now gigantic waves collided with both ship. "Safe!" Brizan grunted as he wrapped his left hand around the mast of the ship. Brizans momentary relief was interrupted first by the map in his right hand bursting in to flames and second with the Moon Goddess flying through the air, several yards above the erupting ocean.

Water sprayed everywhere when the surprisingly durable ship crashed into the ocean. Brizan, however knew not was all safe yet and lowered the sails to help widen the gap between him and the marines, he could only imagine how hard it would be for so many people to work together and not panic after such an assault.

Brizan let out a sigh of relief, the ocean was peaceful and quiet once more, it was only him and the ship which he was now adjusting to the north. That was when it hit him, the map was incinerated by some sort of ammunition during their last attempt on bringing him down, not only that his matress, his weapons and his sash were washed away and… "ORRAHN!" Brizan called out, suddenly realizing who was missing.

There was a moment of dreadful silence before a reply calmed his fears. "Oh calm down blondie!" the twelve year old burglar answered his back, completely out of sight. Brizan could not believe he did not notice the grappling hook attached to the same mast Brizan was holding onto just moments ago as Orrahn climbed his way over the side of the ship. "Zehehehe!" Orrahn laughed. "That was fun! I barely managed to hook on," Orrahn said with a grin after patting his jacket. "After getting my stuff of course!"

Brizan sighed, sounding slightly relieved before slouching back up against the wheel. "Too bad the gun and sash from my master are gone…" Brizan moaned.

Brizan was answered with one of Orrahn's signature wide grins. "You mean these?" he asked as he pulled the two items and Brizan's sword from his jacket and threw them to the ground. "You underestimate me blondie!" he grinned.

"Thanks I guess," Brizan said, rolling his eyes at his friend's attitude while he tied his sash and belt back around his waist before reequipping his weapons. "But my mattress…." Brizan whined, letting out a large yawn while the stars continued to sparkle in the night sky.

A Few Miles Away

The marine ship rocked heavily as it attempted to stabilize after the waves. "DAMN IT!" Butterfield growled, throwing his sword to the ground in fury. "How did they manage to get away again!"

"I think I managed to hit something with an exploding bolt…" a young female chief petty officer responded. She had long, wavy orange hair and a strange crossbow like contraption on her back. "I think they went to the north though!"

Butterfield let out a sigh as he calmed down, having suddenly come up with an idea. "I will be right back!" he announced, sounding confident once more. "I need to make a call!" he concluded as he opened the door to his cabin.

Three days later

"Whaley's back! Whalebert has returned!" Orrahn sung excitedly.

"Any news?" Brizan asked the massive fishman as water slid off his waterproof suit. Bert had just returned from one of his many scouting trips that he had gone on the past few days since the loss of the much needed map. He also seemed to have lost his compass during the chaos, the best guide Brizan had the past few days was the positioning of son since the young navigator was completely clueless when it came to astronomy.

"You won't believe what I just found!" Bert said with a huge grin on his face.

"An island?" Brizan asked in a dreary, yet sarcastic monotone. Brizan was not even about to get his hopes up at this point.

"Yup! Though you were supposed to ask what I found…" Bert said, almost losing his smile for moment as Brizan killed the excitement of his discovery. "Judging from the currents, it seems to be quite big! I think that I will be able to lead us to it!"

"Land ho! Land ho!" Orrahn chanted while sitting on the part of the mast that connected to the sails. The renegade youngster currently had his fingers around his eye like he was looking through a spyglass.

Brizan let out a sigh and rolled his eyes at his friend's eccentrics. "Well the bigger it is, the higher the chance it has stuff that we need, maybe even a village where I can get us a new compass."

"Not to mention some wood to repair the ship and finish the figurehead! It's bad luck to sail without a figure head you know!" Bert said with a huge grin as he dove into the water with enough force to rock the boat.

"I don't think that luck had much to do with our current situation," Brizan said with sarcasm as he remembered the fiasco Bert caused just three days earlier. "Besides I rather like the weasel neck…"

Chinaboru Island: South Blue

After a couple hours of sailing behind Bert's massive form, the island finally came into view. The first object that Brizan noticed was the massive snow-capped mountain at its center. Next he noticed the rather small size of the island in comparison to the mountain. 'I don't know this island…' Brizan thought to himself rather disturbed. He knew they had to be near the northern boundary of the South Blue at this point, and had made it a point to study the world government's latest maps of the area, yet he never learned of such an island in all of his readings.

"Blondie, Blondie!" Orrahn chimed in to disrupt Brizan's train of thought, waving his arms frantically in the air.

"What!" Brizan groaned in an annoyed tone at his green-haired friend who seemed to be successful in disrupting Brizan's thoughts.

"Nothing, just wanted to annoy you." The thief grinned mischievously.

Brizan rolled his eyes as the boat neared the island before dropping anchor just off shore. 'Looks like no one lives here.' Brizan solemnly thought before lying back on the deck of the ship, wishing he still had his mattress.

" goooooooooooooooooo!" Orrahn exclaimed before launching himself into the water making the rather long swim to shore.

"Would you like to go too Brizan?" Bert asked from the water. "I could ferry you over there on my way to get some wood to repair the ship."

"Naw, its fine, I will just rest here," Brizan responded with a tired yawn.

24 Hours Later

Annoyance, as usual, was the first emotion Brizan felt when he woke with a start by a loud rumbling that rocked the whole ship. 'Must be Bert…' Brizan thought to himself as he attempted to fall back asleep only to be awoken yet again by Bert who came flying out of the ocean and landed on The Moon Goddess with a loud thud. "Uuuuugh…" Brizan moaned.

"Did you feel that rumbling?" Bert asked with a strange expression that seemed to be a cross with his usual smile and legitimate concern.

"Wasn't that just you working on the ship?" Brizan asked in a tone of voice that was crossed between annoyance and curiosity.

"No way, I'm as silent as a cat," Bert said as he attempted to take a silent step forward only for his colossal frame to slip and crash to the floor of the ship, badly damaging his own creation. "Maybe, it was an earthquake," Bert said with a dumb grin on his face.

"Guess so…" Brizan said while holding onto the now rocking ship. "Wait, have you seen Orrahn?" Brizan asked with concern for his friend.

"Nope!" Bert said with his grin replaced by a frown. "It must have been a day now since he left!" Bert observed thoughtfully.

"I SLEPT FOR A DAY!" Brizan exclaimed with quite a bit of surprise in his voice. It took a while for the young sailor to realize exactly what he just said meant before he sighed and stood up. "Eh, I should probably go after him, for all we know Butterfield could have cleverly lured us to this island so that Orrahn would wander off, get captured, and then be used as bait to capture me!" Brizan suggested, going off on a wild tangent while he walked to the edge of the ship.

"Bohohohoho!" Bert laughed as he splashed into the ocean and motioned for Brizan to jump onto his massive back. "You know, I have been beginning to wonder about you and that Butterfield fella," Bert began. "Considering he set your master up to be killed, you don't seem to be very angry about it."

"Eh," Brizan responded, suddenly sounding a lot less cold for a change. "After two years of constant encounters with him, you learn to tolerate it. Besides I want to clear my name anyways, killing him wouldn't do anything about that," Brizan said shortly before letting out a long yawn. "If I ever get revenge, it will be the smart way."

"Ah," replied Bert simply, rather surprised by Brizan's deep response, he hadn't quite managed to figured him out yet. "Well here we are!" Bert said with a massive grin as he carried Brizan onto the dry ground.

"Yea whatever island this is…" Brizan rolled his eyes with a smirk. "Are you going to help or does the ship still need some work?"

"Yea, it's a real shame!" The manta ray fishman replied with enthusiasm. "But we can't sail on with just a weasel neck to be our guide! It's bad luck to sail on a ship without a figurehead you know!"

"Yea, I kind of figured something was wrong with our luck when we ended up in the middle of nowhere with a damaged ship," Brizan replied. "Where do you get the wood from anyways?" the young outlaw asked, seeing as he slept through all of the repairs.

"Bohohohoho!" Bert laughed as he suddenly lumbered towards the trees at a speed a bit faster than Brizan expected though still far slower than the speed demon that was Orrahn. " FIST!" Bert bellowed, his fist hitting the tree with full force, causing it to come crashing to the ground.

"Shoulda known…" Brizan sighed as he strolled into the woods while Bert tossed the tree into the air and knocked off all the branches with a couple of huge, sweeping kicks before catching what was now a massive log and bringing it back to the ship with it slung over his shoulder.

Brizan now found himself in a tropical forest, as one would likely expect when nearing the equator. The further Brizan made his way in, the taller the trees got and the odder animals became. 'I need to get to that huge mountain to see if I can find any sort of civilization, chances are that Orrahn would be robbing them.'

A war between two rival families of ants currently caught Brizan's attention as he slashed his way through the dense forest. Brizan jumped forward and spun around as a loud hiss alarmed his from behind. He couldn't have moved earlier for a huge green tree viper struck the area where he was standing just moments ago. "Shit," Brizan said to himself as the serpent coiled itself back around the tree branch it had struck from "I need to be more careful," Brizan added, backing up a couple of feet before turning around and continuing on his way.

Brizan advanced through the forest with a whole new mindset, paying attention to both the trees and the ground, expecting danger from the most unlikely sources. The young outlaw had a couple more close calls as he moved closer and closer to the mountain. Whether is be a giant, bird eating spider, another tree snake, or even the occasional jaguar, everything seemed to want him dead.

About two hours after he left the ship, Brizan finally made it to the center of the tiny, unknown island. "Wow…" Brizan said, unable to think of anything else to describe the pure majesty of the mountain that loomed above him.

A strange thundering sound interrupted Brizan's thoughts. The outlaw barely had time to react before his blade clashed with an enormous rack of antlers. A large green and white deer had come out of nowhere and sent Brizan to the ground. The creature was twice as large as any dear he had ever seen and far more muscular. The antlers themselves had a silverish tint to them and were equally as menacing.

The buck attempted to smash Brizan with his hooves, but the blond haired vagrant managed to roll out of the way. Brizan jumped to his feet and prepared to fight the magnificent beast. The buck let out a grunt and leaped at Brizan. Thankfully, the lack of momentum made the attack far weaker so Brizan through his sword up and braced it with his left hand.

Brizan grinned while the antlers clashed with his blade. "Well this was easy," he scoffed as he slid his left hand smoothly past the blade and the antlers and around the back of the buck's neck. In one fluid movement, Brizan slid the sword from the antlers, causing the buck to stumble forward, and then used the beast's momentum to swing himself onto its back and then onto the branch of a nearby tree.

The buck snorted in fury as he eye Brizan in the trees before turning and galloping back in the dense forest. 'Hmm, he didn't completely leave,' Brizan thought to himself when he could no longer hear the echoing footsteps of the titanic deer. 'I better be cautious.' The blond-haired vagrant thought to himself while carefully moving from tree to tree until he was right at the mountain and then jumped, catching on to a piece of rock that stuck out with both hands.

Brizan quickly swung his feet down to some nice foot holds before looking up. He was about ten feet off the ground and could see that this outer edge of the mountain ended about twenty feet up. 'There must be a path up there,' he thought to himself as he carefully made his way up the mountain.

Brizan grunted loudly as he hoisted himself over the ledge and onto solid ground. The exhausted outlaw rolled onto his back and reflected on the events that had occurred so far. "This is way too much work," he moaned while lying there on the spiraling mountain path. "Wait, why is the mountain so desolate yet the level ground so lush and tropical?" he observed in sudden concern while observing the various structures and caves climbing up the mountain side. As if in response to Brizan's observation, a pair of glowing red eyes glared from a cave not too far away.

"Whoa!" Brizan exclaimed as he jumped to his feet and began to move up the trail at a much quicker pace.

After about one hour of climbing, Brizan decided that he was high enough as the sun was now beginning to set. As he spiraled up the mountain, he managed to find a village to the east with a large bonfire at its center. The goal now was to find the best way through the forest to get there. One of the pluses was that this side of the mountain actually had a slope that was possible to climb down despite still being fairly steep.

Brizan yawned and looked behind him to see a nicely sized cave. 'It might be a good idea to rest here for a minute and regain my energy before I head into the unknown,' he thought cautiously as he walked into the cave and drank some of his water that he brought with him. Thankfully the sash that Strawberry sent Wong regulated air flow or Brizan would have been burning up in all his clothes. His being said, the blond-haired criminal still had to remove his yin-yang t-shirt from under his jacket because it had gotten so nasty.

Brizan suddenly tensed up and whipped out his pistol. He had heard a rock being kicked behind him and was now pointing his gun at the culprit.

"Kekekekekeke," laughed the culprit, "and here I thought you were a member of that blasted village coming to recapture me," the person said with an innocent smile. The man was rather young and probably sixteen or seventeen. He had short, ruffled black hair and black eyes. In terms of build, the man was very skinny yet stood about four inches taller than Brizan. The man had a brown leather, feather plumed hat and a leather jacket to match. He also had a white undershirt, brown slacks and a pair of leather boots to top it all off. His hands were held high as if he was about to swing an object that looked suspiciously like a lute.

"Drop the lute…now," Brizan commanded in a surprisingly stern tone and waited for the man to lay his instrument on the ground before subsequently raising his hands back above his head. "Now who are you and were you watching me?"

"The name is Mattahan Tal, bard," the man said with an odd accent. "You can call me Tal though and I wasn't watching you, I have been hiding in this cave to avoid being sacrificed by those crazy villagers, when you just happened to wonder in," Tal explained rather sincerely.

"Why would you be sacrificed?" Brizan asked before letting a big, almost uncaring yawn and sitting back down on the ground with his gun still pointed at Tal.

"These villagers worship the two most powerful beasts on this Island; the Sage Deer of the forest who represents life and natural order, and the Hellfire Salamander who represents death and chaos, or at least from what I understand," Tal said with a very sincere look on his face. "They are currently trying to find a human sacrifice for the salamander to settle the island down, if you have heard the rumblings that is." Tal let out a sigh. "Welcome to Chinaboru Island!" Tal concluded enthusiastically.

Brizan simply sat there, a bit surprised. 'Is it possible that the buck in the forest was the Sage Deer?' Brizan considered before recalling the event that occurred after he made it onto the mountain path with the pair of glowing red eyes. 'Could it be?' he thought as he lowered his gun. "Your story seems to match up." Brizan sighed. "So how did you manage to get away?" the outlaw asked.

"Kekekekeke, that's the best part!" Tal exclaimed. "I was untied, being painted up for the ceremony, when some idiot kid came busting out of a hut with a sack of stolen goods and all the villagers chasing after him. The dumb bloke probably got captured, I never bothered to look, I just grabbed my lute and ran."

Brizan sighed, stood back up, and casually pointed his gun at Tal. "It's a shame, I was starting to like you, but it looks like you are going to be sacrificed to a salamander," Brizan stated bluntly.

"Wa-wa-wa-wa-what?" Tal stammered with a face of complete shock.

Brizan sighed and rubbed his left eye with his left hand. "Sorry man but that idiot kid it my travelling companion so I guess you got to get sacrificed in his stead, unless you got a better plan," Brizan said lazily. He knew there were a lot better strategies to go with here, buy why bother when someone else can think one up for you?

A few hours later

Brizan was now lying down in the cave, munching on some bread and watching Tal to make sure he didn't make a break for it. The two had decided to wait and ambush the villagers when they brought Orrahn up the trail and to the "Cliff of Sacrifice".

Tal glared at Brian for a moment before quickly reconstructing his gaze into a light smile. 'Gosh,' he thought to himself as he felt the lump in his jacket pocket, 'and here I thought that he might fall asleep so I could make a call'.

"What do you want?" Brizan said irritably as he noticed the bard staring at him.

Tal was quick to recover. "I just realized you never told me your name!"

"No I did not," Brizan agreed as he quickly began to construct a name and backstory.

"Err, well can you tell me?" Tal prodded.

"Yes I can," Brizan responded with a smile, he just needed a couple more seconds to finish rehearsing his story. Besides, he was always up for being a jerk.

"Alright, well tell me," Tal demanded, trying his best to sound unforceful and suspicious. Well as unforceful and suspicious as a hostage can sound anyways.

"The name is Valabart Kagan, renowned explorer from Babylon Island. Got tired of being in that stupid city, wasn't really liked there anyways," Brizan lied with a strong sense of pride in his makeshift identity.

"I can see why," Tal responded with a defiant smirk as his grip on the lump in his pocket slacked.

Before Brizan could respond the ground began to rumble violently once more. This time, however the shaking was way worse than it was on the boat. Panic struck the pair as the cave began to fall on them. A rock the size a small dog fell in front of Tal, distracting him from the rock about to fall on his skull.

Brizan, however, saw the rock and clubbed Tal in the back of the head with his is forearm so hard that a small cloud of dust rose around the impact site where Tal's face hit the ground. The falling rock probably would have hurt less.

"Well that's the last time I put forth any sort of effort to help someone other than Orrahn," Brizan grunted as the rumbling stopped.

Tal stood up with one hand on his violently bleeding nose. "I hate you."

"Eh its whatever…" Brizan shrugged. "What's up with all the earthquakes anyways?"

It was at this moment that the pair heard some voices coming up the mountain. "Hurry up," a voice ordered. "We are running out of time!"

'Well this sucks,' Orrahn thought to himself as he dangled, bound by both hands and feet from a seven foot wooden pole. Things couldn't really get much worse for the twelve year old, he still couldn't believe he got caught. It had been less than a day ago when he was perched on a tree with the village's belonging in his bag when a nasty spider bit him and knocked him out cold, causing him to fall right onto the village's head priest as he prepared the sacrifice. Orrahn was in high spirits when he finally woke up to find that the poison had been treated, only to have those spirits dashed when he learned that he was only cured so that the village could have a clean sacrifice.

The villagers themselves looked rather interesting. Their hair was fashioned as one would expect a tribal village in an outlying island to fashion their hair, this meaning that most males had hair down to their mid back and various braided segments. Their clothes on the other hand was a different matter, the villagers all seemed to wear modern clothes, the priest even wore a pair of glasses(though for some odd reason he seemed to constantly run into walls and trees anyways). Orrahn figured they had stolen the clothes from visitors to the island after they sacrificed them, which would explain why the clothes were so dirty.

"Just a little bit further and you shall be free from your stress!" A villager told Orrahn with a rather big smile on his face.

Orrahn gave him a big smile. "You mean that you went to Mar-" he began to innocently say before a foot suddenly passed by his face and sent the villager tumbling down the side of the mountain.

The two villagers holding the pole were so surprised that they relaxed their grip. This was a bad mistake when you are dealing with a kid who specialized in using anything and everything as a weapon. Orrahn quickly twisted his body by throwing head and legs in opposite direction. His bottom half was instantly jerked out of one of the carrier's arms while the top half of the pole drove into the other villager's kidney, causing him to let go as well. Orrahn rolled in midair while he fell so that he landed on the pole to avoid getting hurt before rolling and spinning onto his back to unleash a flurry of blows to the unsuspecting shins of… everyone.

"Ow!" Brizan exclaimed as he grabbed his shin "What the hell Orrahn!" Orrahn did not seem to be discriminating on who he hit at all as both of the pole carrier's plus a guard were down on the ground and now being beaten in the head mercilessly by the thief.

"My bad blondie!" Orrahn grinned while he came to a stop so that Brizan could untie him. A guard saw the opportunity and went at Brizan with his spear.

"Death jab!" A voice with a strange accent announced as a thin black sword caught the villager's midsection in a fast stab. "Oh you can fight?" Brizan said to Tal as slid the flintlock pistol he had drawn when he realized he was in danger back into his sash. "I didn't even notice you had weapons. I am sure you will come in handy next time we have to deal with poorly armed villagers," Brizan added drearily while Orrahn's ropes fell to the ground.

"CAPTURE THEM!" the head priest screamed at the lone remaining guard. He was still coming to terms with what had happened in the last sixteen seconds. "We must present the sacrifice to the beasts or their anger will not subside!"

"You're welcome!" Tal added, the grip on his two thin black swords tightening.

"Thanks curly!" Orrahn thanked Tal for Brizan before jumping to his feet and charging at the priest. The priest prepared his gnarled staff to block the attack but did not expect Orrahn to do back handspring kick combo to his gust, sending him to the ground.

Brizan stood in his winter mantis stance and easily sidestepped the attack of the guard. "Easy," the outlaw commented while he simultaneously struck the neck and swept the shins of the villager, sending him crashing to the ground.

With all of the villagers defeated, the trio wasted no time in fleeing. The "beasts", however, did not seem to like their sacrifice's escape as the ground began to rumble violently again before they had even made it a hundred yards.

"Crap!" Tal exclaimed "We better get out of here before the volcano erupts!"

Brizan froze¸ he had completely forgotten about the moments before the ambush where Tal explained that the "earthquakes" were not actually earthquakes, but the rumblings of a volcano that had been inactive for hundreds if not thousands of years. The eruption was going to be deadly. "No," he stated simply.

"Hurry up blondie!" Orrahn nagged in his usual hasty manner despite not knowing about the volcano at all.

"I said no," Brizan repeated before taking several steps back towards the villagers as the rumblings subsided. "I can't simply run away and leave all these villagers to die, they are people too!"

"Strange," Tal stated to Orrahn. "I never thought he'd be so noble."

"Well, in his own special way, he is," Orrahn responded with a grin.

Brizan was now fifty yards from the villagers who were just now struggling to their feet. "HEY!" Brizan yelled. "THIS MOUNTAIN IS ABOUT TO ERUPT INTO FLAMES! RUN AWAY!" The blond-haired outlaw shouted to the startled villagers before sprinting back to Orrahn and Tal. "Okay!" Brizan stated. "Conscience cleared, let's go!" And with that, the three slid down the side of the mountain and into the rainforest.

Over an hour later, Chinaboru shoreline

Bert's hand slipped as the ground rumbled for the fourth time in an hour, ruining the blueprints Bert had been drawing in the sand. "Dang it!" Bert exclaimed in a rather cheerful manner. "Oh well! I don't think that design would have worked anyways!" He said, quickly getting over his failure. " FIST!" Bert Bellowed while his fist hit the sand with so much force that it took several minutes for all of it to settle on that now erased image.

Bert had finished the figurehead about two hours after Brizan left, but was waiting for Brizan and Orrahn to return before he would attach it to the ship. 'I wonder what is taking them so long!' Bert worried. 'I hope they aren't having too much fun on the island without me!"

Bert did not have to wait much long for three figures soon emerged from the dense forest. "BRIIIIZAAAN!" Bert called out to the figures.

Brizan flinched upon hearing his name, Tal knew he was lying now. Brizan looked over to see the bard's reaction, but he was gone. 'Strange, I just saw him, he must still be in the forest.'

"Whaaaaaaaaaaalebert!" Orrahn called out. "We gotta go, the mountain is gunna go boom!" Orrahn sung as he and Brizan reached their fishman friend.

"Boom you say! That is no good at all!" Bert said while looking at the pair. 'Strange, I thought I saw one more.' Bert perplexed as he stood there for a moment before turning back to the ship. "Let's go then?" bert asked, his massive form wading into the water.

"Not yet," Brizan answered "we got one more! He shouldn't be too far behind!"

"KAGAN! ORRAHN! I'M OVER HERE!" Tall called out as he approached the group. "Sorry, I got turned around," he explained to Brizan.

"Its fine, lets go!" Brizan answered before him and the two others jumped on Bert's back and rode it to the ship with the weasel neck.

"Didn't you get this fixed?" Brizan asked Bert as he pulled up the anchor while Orrahn lowered the sails.

"I did," Bert answered at the helm, "but I was waiting for you guys to see it first"

"Oh well, I guess we can fix it later," Brizan responded brightly. "Hey Tal, we lost our maps, do you know the way to the closest inhabited island?"

Tal smiled broadly at this. "Of course," but before he could say more a frightening boom echoed across the entire ocean. It was at this moment, when the quartet was safely at sea that the Chinaboru Volcano chose to erupt, covering the skies of the south blue in ash.

Meanwhile at Smokey Top Island: South Blue

"I told yam meestah judge!" a voice said in a rather thick accent "I a jus galang bout mi business and dis rude bwoy samfi got mi! He weh gonn'a dun mi, seen?" the man pleaded. The man had a rather interesting figure, he was wearing the usual black and white prisoner guard while his feet were bound by a pair of cuffs that seemed to be constructed of some greyish stone. In terms of hair, the man had none on his head though his did have some salt and pepper scruff going from the base of his ears to his chin. He stood about 5'10" and had very dark skin, he also had a rather large gut. Perhaps the most interesting aspect of the man was his lack of hands on either arm.

The judge seemed to ponder for a moment, though perhaps he was simply attempting to figure out what the man had said to him. "Seen?" the man repeated in desperation, the judge obviously didn't understand that 'seen?' meant 'do you understand?' Things were not faring well for the man and his odd slang.

Silence struck the courtroom as the gavel hit the judge's podium. "After going over all of the evidence and listening to your appeal," the judge began, his grey walrus mustache flopping freely on his face, "it is by the power invested in me," the judge continued, "that I declare the defendant, 'No Hands Jerry' guilty of burglary of pricless objects, several accounts of assault, as well as one account on manslaughter and sentence him to death!"

Butterfield smiled in the background as Jerry was silently taken away. He had finally managed to rake in one of the pests that had been eluding him as of late and had more on their way. It was a good day to be Captain Butterfield.

* * *

><p>An: Finally got a submitted OC into the story. Also, two of the characters mentioned in this chapter will join the Rift's, but which ones?

I have a HUGE chapter 3 for the rifts planned, probably a three parter so stay tuned!

Next chapter I write, however, will be Sorus's three part prison break, I wonder how he will fare?


	14. Oregano Chapter 3 Part 1

Disclaimer: We do not own One Piece in any way.

Uh-Oh Look Out Oregano! Oion Bay Packs a Punch!

By: peanutbutterlung (Whale)

Morning on the Cherry Maria

It was a windy morning out on the West Blue today, and the waves of the ocean bobbed up and down a little rougher than usual. The Cherry Maria was simply coasting along however as it headed to its next destination.

It was a little past seven o'clock in the morning and Oregano and Polen were both currently still snoozing away in the sleeping quarters. Oregano would normally be up by now but he hadn't slept very well due to his leg aching all night long so he was sleeping in a little extra this morning due to the fact that he had finally fallen asleep a couple hours ago.

As the two continued to rest peacefully in silence, a sudden jarring 'squawk' noise came from outside the Cherry Maria. The squawk was then immediately followed by a loud and solid 'thud' on one of the sleeping quarter's windows. Oregano, startled from this rude awakening sprang up quickly to see what the ham was going on. This sudden movement that he made however was a terrible decision on his part, but since he had been sleeping and just woke up he wasn't thinking clearly. The sudden movement he made triggered a shockingly painful jolt that ran all over his broken leg.

"Ayeeeeeeeee!" Oregano hollered out in pain as he readjusted himself to stop his leg from aching and tried to catch his breath from the intense pain currently running relay races throughout his entire body.

Polen, who was not awoken by the 'thud' on the window due to him being such a heavy sleeper had been unaffected by the whole situation until he heard Oregano scream out in pain however which upset the little koala to no end. Quickly springing himself out of his bed Polen soared through the air and landed on the face of his master and began to chomp down on Oregano's nose.

"Gheeeee! Poleeeen! Cut it ooooout!" Oregano shouted in quite a funny voice because his nasal passages were currently blocked off by vicious koala teeth. As he struggled to pry Polen off of him his leg was killing him more than ever due to the jerking movements from wrestling a koala.

Finally with one fluid push Oregano sent Polen flying back onto his own bed and threw his hands up. "Whew buddy, remember I have a broken leg I can't do too much physical activity." Oregano calmly uttered as he desperately reached for his crutch beside his bed. He took hold of it and pushed down on it to help himself rise out of bed.

"Sorry for shouting but something slammed against this window causing me to move wrong and it hurt my leg." Oregano started to explain to Polen as he made his way to the window to see what he could see. When he looked back to see if Polen was cool with the situation he saw a sleeping koala sprawled out on the bed.

"Goodness Polen how in the world do you manage to go from one extreme to another in a matter of seconds?!" Oregano laughed as he wobbled over to the window using his crutch.

When Oregano finally made it to the window after a good amount of wobbling he peered out through the glass and looked down at the windowsill on the outside of the window. What he saw on the other side was a seagull lying on its back with a dazed expression on its face. The seagull was a very pure white color but it was not solid white for it had three light blue stripes marking all the way around its neck.

Its feathers were all extremely rustled and messy, and that is when the strong wind outside became evident to Oregano because as he inspected the bird its feathers were getting blown about in many different directions.

"Ah wow! So you are what woke me up huh little guy?!" Oregano questioned as he continued to look out at the seagull. "I can only imagine how hard flying would be in that rough wind outside!" He added as he began to feel sympathy for the practically knocked out bird on his windowsill. He could tell it was out cold and feared that if it stayed in the windy condition on such a small ledge as this windowsill it could be blown out into the ocean and drown.

So he then quietly unlatched the window lock as to not wake up the sleeping Polen that had already tried to rip his nose off this morning, and he gently scooped the passed out and limp seagull into the room and latched the window back as softly as he could.

"Alright seagull, you can stay on my ship until you regain consciousness!" Oregano whispered as he hobbled out of the sleeping quarters with his crutch under one arm, and a knocked out seagull held tightly in the other. His destination was the upper deck so that the seagull wouldn't make a mess of things inside the cabin and would be free to fly away once he snapped back to reality.

Oregano waddled through the living area of the Cherry Maria and ultimately found himself face to face with the stairs to the upper deck standing before him ominously. He took a deep breath and gave a determined head nod as he picked his crutch up off the ground and set it up on the first step.

Last night going down these steps from the upper deck proved to be quite a challenge for him, and now that he had both hands full he knew that going up these steps would be even worse. This was going to be extreme for sure!

"Here goes nothing Tompkins!" Oregano muttered to the seagull who he had just named on a whim because he was beginning to feel a close bonding moment between them develop so he felt it was only necessary for his new birdy friend to have a name.

Putting his weight forward on the crutch that he had placed on the first step, he hesitantly eased himself forward. As his body slowly shifted upward he swiftly regained his balance and swooped his back leg up onto the step. He had made it to the first step. Oregano let out a sigh of relief as he looked at the flight of stairs staring back at him. "One down! This is going to be cake!" He laughed as he began his preparations for the next step before him…

20 Minutes Later

After hobbling up the stairs with the utmost degree of carefulness that he could muster, Oregano had finally managed to make it to the second to last step from the top. "We're gonna make it Tompkins!" Oregano bellowed in a way too overly dramatic fashion and a ridiculously fake deep voice.

Now that the two were so close to their destination Oregano quickly positioned his crutch up and forward onto the next and final step. Then immediately switching his attention to his casted left leg he pressed down on the crutch and simultaneously let his foot off the back step. With his weight completely on the crutch a sudden sensation of sliding was felt as the crutch did not hold steady.

A feeling of complete vulnerability was cast over him as he stated to fall backwards. His eyes desperately darted around looking for why this was happening. They finally met with the culprit of this misfortune. Underneath his crutch on the final step Oregano had unknowingly placed the end of his crutch on top of a soggy Eucalyptus leaf sushi roll that had been left out all night!

"Nooooo!" Oregano cried out as he slipped and finally lost balance completely. He realized he was now completely midair and falling backwards down the stairs.

Desperately bracing himself for impact Oregano maneuvered Tompkins with his limp body above his own so that the bird wouldn't get squished or harmed in this tumbling that was about to occur.

A loud and repetitive series of crashes soon echoed throughout the Cherry Maria as Oregano let out many yelps and shouts of pain. Eventually the bottom step was reached and Oregano could feel his broken leg throb with an unimaginable amount of pain. Not to mention the rest of his body was now beat up and bruised. He had his eyes clamped tight from the pain but managed slowly peak one eye open to look down at Tompkins lying peacefully on his chest. "Whew at least I didn't squish you Tompkins. You owe me big time man." Oregano laughed but quickly made himself stop because the shaking his body made from laughing was making his entire body ache.

A sudden scurrying was then heard by Oregano that made him smile with great joy. "So Polen is coming to check and see if I am alright huh? Gah what a stellar friend he is! I could really use some comfort right about now that's for sure!" He whispered lightly as he slowly turned his head towards the door to the sleeping quarters in the distance. The one eye he had managed to peak open scanned the area past the living quarters and finally spotted the fuzzy koala sprinting towards him.

"Awww come here Polen I'm hurt pretty badly my main man!" Oregano called out expecting an affectionate hug from his koala.

Polen on the other hand was thinking nothing of the sort because he had been woken up by this load crashing down the stairs that shook and rattled the entire ship. This was twice that Oregano had awakened him from his slumber and he was going to extract his revenge. Pouncing from halfway across the living quarters to the stairs Polen headed straight for Oregano with his claws! This was beginning to become an everyday occurrence.

Finally on the Deck of the Cherry Maria

After all the hustle and bustle that had occurred a short while ago on the stairs leading to the top deck and of course after recovering from even more koala inflicted injuries, Oregano had finally made it to the deck with Tompkins still safe in his arms.

Oregano was aching like nobody's business as he delicately made his way step by step to the center of his ship. He set Tompkins down on the deck and piled up a few twigs and branches that were still scattered about from being docked under the trees back in Plisboro Cove into a nest around the bird.

"Hah, good thing I haven't had time to clean this deck. Now you get to rest in a cozy nest!" Oregano softly laughed as to not jar himself too hard to increase the pain his body was already feeling.

He then straightened up after bending over to make a nest for Tompkins and looked up to the sky. Unlike yesterday which began with rain, today's weather was bright and shiny with many fluffy white clouds floating by peacefully in the sky. The harsh winds that he had seen earlier that led to Tompkins crashing into his window must have finally passed because the air around him was now incredibly stagnant.

"Ahh wow you really just picked an unlucky time to be flying today Tompkins!" Oregano muttered to the unconscious bird beneath him as he scanned the ocean around him. "Well at least we have a calm day now after what happened yesterday." Oregano continued as he made his way to the front of the ship. "I can only imagine how long this will last though!" He chuckled.

Then peering out in front of him he began to see the outline of an island in the distance. Unlike Yortori Rise this one was massive from the looks of it. The harder he looked at the outline the further the island seemed to stretch along the horizon. "Wow that has to be it! It's Oion!" He shouted with a laugh. Then, he quickly gripped his ribs that started throbbing from his diaphragm's expansion from the shouting and laughter. "Gosh I really laugh a lot! It only took getting beaten to a pulp to realize it!" Oregano muttered.

Once the pain died down a little he looked up over the island in the distance once more and estimated that they would arrive within the next four hours.

"Hmm Polen is back to sleeping and Tompkins is still out for the count. I suppose I can start cleaning up this mess up here on deck that Tompkins isn't using for a nest at the moment...and then I can make a nice breakfast for us all…" He was then cut off mid thought by a News Coo dropping a News Paper next to him from the sky above.

"Aha the morning paper! I reckon I could let this mess stay here for a while longer. Let's see what is happening in this crazy world today! Then I will get right onto to breakfast! … Hopefully I will be able to make it down those stinkin' stairs without any trouble this time!" He added with a sigh as he propped his back up against the mast of his ship and unfolded the paper in his hands.

Meanwhile Back on Yortori Rise

"What in the world do you mean you still can't get signal to Oion?" A frustrated and incredibly flustered Mayor Dimblanté screeched towards her underlings. She was pacing back and forth in her office frantically spitting and sputtering in disappointment. "You have had since last night to fix this blasted problem and still nothing! What am I paying you for! My reputation is on the line! I must report that blasted Oregano bastard to the marines!"

The mayor's underlings all held their heads low as one muttered under his breath. "Our Den- Den Mushis just aren't responding mayor, they have been sleeping the entire time and nothing seems to wake them up."

Mayor Dimblanté's face grew red with anger as she stomped her foot on the ground. "You bozos won't have jobs for as long if you don't get a response out of these blasted snails before noon!" And with that the mayor briskly left the office with a loud and agitated sigh.

Elsewhere on a Ship Floating in the West Blue off the Coast of Yortori Rise

"Eh Captain?! Are you sure that batch of herbal powder will keep those Den- Den Mushis quiet long enough for Oregano to get to Oion safely?" A worried voice whispered out the side of his mouth.

"Ha am I sure?!" A voice boomed in response. The man the voice belonged to firmly pressed his fingers into his forehead as he continued. "I Barnaban Nooseclef guarantee that my special snail sleeping powder will work splendidly on those Den-Den Mushis! "

Barnaban and his crew were currently sailing on a small ship that they had successfully swiped from the Sukini Docks. They had secretly sabotaged the mayor's office before escaping the island themselves with sleeping snail herbal powder that Barnaban had made himself.

Barnaban's crew laughed easily after hearing their captain's confident response and their worries towards Oregano's safety left there minds.

Barnaban then gritted his teeth as he grinned, fingers still pressed tightly to his forehead as he spoke. "After realizing that I so carelessly shouted his name for all to hear as he departed Yortori, I really owed him this extra time. Luckily being a botanist I had just the herbal remedy to help out in this sticky situation."

Shaking his head he continued "I know that that mayor will want to alert Oion and Difetto of who the man who held them all at gunpoint was and where he is now heading as soon as possible. This could prove incredibly dangerous!"

Barnaban's crew members all nodded in agreement as their captain spoke.

"How long do you think those snails will be out for captain?" A crew member piped up with great curiosity in his voice.

"Ahh let's see…" Barnaban murmured as he began to calculate the amount of powder used, how many snails the office held and how long it had been since planting the powder in the office.

"I would say they won't be waking up until about 3:00 today. That should be enough time for Oregano to make it to Oion already and hopefully blend in. He said he wanted supplies and to find some possible crew mates for his journeys. I hope he realizes he is pressed for time and makes this trip as fast as possible. Oion holds a military presence on it that is no laughing matter!"

Barnaban then gulped as he thought about what Oregano was up against.

"He sure made an assortment of enemies quickly. He has the likes of the Plisboro security department, the marines, the mayor of Sukini City and '8-Fold' Remey as well!" Barnaban then slapped his knee hard at the mentioning of Remey. "Blast it! I forgot to warn him of Remey's power! I got too caught up in the 'Unforgivable Path!' yesterday! Remey and his Rascal pirates will surely go after Oregano the next chance they get!" Two days out at sea and you already have all this on your shoulders Oregano! Be careful my friend!"

"Be careful my friend?! We should go help him out and warn him…" A crew member frantically chipped in but was cut off by Barnaban holding his hand up quickly in response.

"Oregano is a man of adventure, this is the life he thrives on, we must not interfere. We will meet him again if and when fate allows it... Until then… he lives in this wild world like the adventure seeking lunatic he is. Let's just hope he can find himself a strong crew to balance out his unlucky tendencies. That koala of his is spunky but he won't cut it after this point."

Barnaban and his crew all shook their heads as they all muttered to themselves about how ridiculous Oregano was to live the way he did. It was in a way incredibly refreshing to them however. Cruel pirates were becoming more and more frequent in this world, and the sight of one who simply wanted to explore the world and what it has to offer kept their thoughts on him at ease.

Now an Hour Later Back on the Cherry Maria

The Cherry Maria was now just off the coast of Oion. Oregano had managed to make himself and Polen some breakfast after he had struggled down the stairs when he finished reading the newspaper. He had taken some of the pain medication Barnaban's doctor had given him as well and the effects were starting to kick in from what he could tell.

He was now fully dressed and ready to see what Oion was going to have to offer them. Polen was busy looking after Tompkins who he noticed for the first time doing his daily scurrying all over the top deck. It was his way of making sure his territory was safe. The koala hadn't even noticed the bird in Oregano's arms when he had fallen down the steps, so he was very interested in him. Oregano had given him a bowl of food to set next to the bird for when he awakened and Polen was happy to help out. He loved feeling like he was a big help, and in this case he really was because Oregano really couldn't handle going up the stairs so many times even with the pain relief from the medication.

Oregano had just strapped his pistol onto his belt holster and put it on as he saw Polen hopping joyfully down the steps.

"Is he all set up there buddy?" Oregano questioned his koala. Polen nodded at his remark and once he saw Oregano all dressed and ready to go, he hurried into the sleeping quarters and nabbed his baseball cap and his 'cool' shades. He was now ready to go.

Oregano motioned to Polen to head on up to the deck and the koala happily trotted past him to check on their progress. He was the lookout after all. Oregano wobbled over to the stairs, much smoother than earlier because of the pain medication taking full effect. "Alight awesome this stuff has really kicked in nicely!" He exclaimed as he double checked his pocket to make sure he didn't forget to bring the bottle of pills with him. A rattling of the pills against the plastic bottle reassured him that they were there and he headed up the stairs with only a little bit of trouble this time.

When Oregano reached the top deck he made his way over to Tompkins and saw the bird was still out cold. Then looking up at the crow's nest he saw Polen holding a telescope and scanning the bay before the ship.

The koala then put the telescope down and looked down at Oregano who was holding his hand up to his face to keep the sun out of his eyes.

"What's the scenario Poleeeen?" Oregano called up to Polen anxiously waiting for a response. The koala looked at the island before him and with his scruffy little arms he motioned towards the right.

"Aye-aye my faithful lookout!" Oregano laughed as he steered the ship to the right. As the Cherry Maria continued towards Oion a small inlet caught Oregano's eye and he figured this must be the area Polen had seen. It was from the looks of it a relatively calm spot. A simple dock reached out into the sea, and a few houses were scattered here and there along the coast. This would be a nice spot to dock the ship for sure.

As the Cherry Maria neared the dock a man in an all-black track suit came running from one of the nearby houses. His feet pattered hard on the wooden dock as he then slammed his feet down to a sudden and desperate stop before running straight off the end. The man was a little overweight and Oregano was surprised he could run with such finesse at his size, but this was beside the point. The man had a pompadour hair style that ended with a greasy curl at the end. His face was very oval in shape and his eyes were narrow and glaring. His eyes were really giving Oregano the creeps and this led to an awkward silence falling upon the scene.

"Um sir could you…" Oregano tried to communicate with the man to end the silence but was immediately cut off.

"You don't think I will do it huh?" The man yelled at the top of his lungs.

"What?!" Oregano responded in a puzzled tone but was cut off again by the man.

"You pirates! Always thinking you can do as you please! I will contact the marine base in a heartbeat! I Fletcher Oilybarke am the self-proclaimed protector of this coast!" The man then tightened his fist as he stomped his foot down loudly as he screamed. "What do you plan on doing pirate? I hear Lieutenant Commander Difetto came back to our Marine in a terrible mood and was extra furious about pirates so I won't hesitate to contact him!"

Oregano took a good look at the man as his ship finally made it next to the dock. Not looking behind him he held his arm backwards and pointed down and Polen came running up and climbed up Oregano's arm and propped up on his shoulder. Then grabbing a rope connected to his ship in one hand Oregano threw over the ships ladder with his other arm.

"Just a minute sir, I have to be really careful." Oregano muttered as he tossed his crutch overboard onto the dock beside Fletcher.

Fletcher was confused beyond belief at what was happening before him. Was this pirate crazy or was he just completely unaffected by his threats. Fletcher had already pulled out his baby den-den Mushi, but seeing a crutch thrown over the boat and being referred to as 'sir' struck him as incredibly odd and he somehow found himself watching as the pirate pitifully climbed down the ladder he had thrown over. He saw the cast on Oregano's left leg, and he saw Polen playfully poking at Oregano's armpit trying to make him fall as he clung to the ladder. Fletcher had no idea what to make of this sight. He had never seen a 'pirate' like this before.

Oregano had made it to the bottom plank of his ladder and leaned his 'good' leg backwards and in the most ungraceful manner he hopped onto the deck behind him and managed to stick the one foot landing. Then turning to Fletcher he held out the rope connected to the Cherry Maria.

'Here can you hold this for just a minute please?" Oregano asked with a grin as Fletcher hesitantly grabbed the rope that was being offered to him.

Oregano then turned around and scooped his crutch off the dock beside him. He now had balance and was now ready to talk to Fletcher.

"Hello there Fletcher, my name is Oregano and I was hoping you could watch my ship for me while I explore this island." Oregano calmly requested as he began to hobble towards the land at the end of the dock.

Fletcher was speechless and before he could even respond Oregano was already on the island and was moving out quite well for a crippled man. Then Oregano called out suddenly adding to his previous statement.

"Oh and I have an injured bird chilling up on the deck of the ship so make sure you don't let anyone lame around my ship!"

Fletcher's state of mind was now flipped all around. Had he just been played? Was this pirate trustworthy? Was this even a pirate? Why in the world was he so calm?" And ultimately why was he now finding himself tying this man's ship to the dock? As he thought about all of this madness he was left wondering if he was he losing his edge as the coast's protector.

All of these thoughts and more were running through Fletcher's mind as he watched the pirate stagger off past the coastal houses and ultimately onto the main road which led into the city region of the island.

Now on the Road to Oion's City Region

"We made it Poleeeen!" Oregano cheered as Polen held his arms up into the sky in delight at his master's comment. "I can't wait to see what this island has in store! That man at the docks sure was nice to warn us about Difetto too. Plus he is watching our ship. What a guy! I feel like I owe him something. Maybe I will buy him a present in town!" Oregano exclaimed, still not realizing that Fletcher could have easily alerted the marines that a pirate like him had landed on the island.

Oregano had only heard bits and pieces of what Fletcher had screamed at him, he then pieced the words he heard together in his mind and made what he thought he heard him say into ultimately what he wanted to hear. This was a trait that Oregano used quite often, this is due mostly because he has very, very poor hearing, but he was so excited about exploring this island so that likely played an enormous role in him not paying too much attention to what was being screamed at him as well.

Meanwhile in a Shady Alleyway in Oion's City Region Two Individuals are Plotting Secretly

"So did you make the swap?" a worried voice belonging to one of the men in the alley quietly muttered to the other.

"Yeah I did... they will never see it coming. This stuff doesn't have a scent or nuthin'!" The other man confidently replied as he pulled out an empty glass bottle with an 'x' written on it.

"Whew that's a relief. Alright good, now we just have to wait until the match starts and the plan will be set."

"I hear you there buddy, plus boss was so upset about something so at least we aren't gonna be on his bad side! If we had failed here all hell would've broken loose! He has loads and loads of beli riding on an upset happening today."

"Yeah he can get scary! He would have our heads in a minute! We have to make sure the next step of the plans falls into play at the warm up scrimmage that's scheduled."

"Right, but hey, nothing is going to go wrong. We are all set and our cuts of this massive bet will have us living like kings in no time!"

"Ha you got that right! Well I'm off, see you at the scrimmage."

"Humph of course, see you then."

And with that the two men in the alleyway left the scene one at a time and walked their own paths away from where they had met. A rotten plan had now been thrown into play in this town. Perfect timing of course for the unlucky Oregano to make his visit.

**A/N: Thank you very much for reading this chapter of Oregano - I hope you enjoyed it! Please feel free to comment- I love to read what you have to say!

((Next time! Oregano's Adventure in Oion gets heated!))**


	15. Oregano Chapter 3 Part 2

Disclaimer: We do not own One Piece in any way.

Uh-Oh Look Out Oregano! Oion Bay Packs a Punch! Part Two

By: peanutbutterlung (Whale)

Walking the Road into Oion's City Region

As Oregano walked along the road into Oion's City Region, the sides of the path on either side of him that were once sparsely decorated with only a few seaside cottages quickly changed as he proceeded onwards morphing into what now appeared to be various buildings, shops and towers.

The sun was reaching its peak in the sky by this point and its beams of light were reflecting brightly off the hundreds of windows that adorned the many towers that encompassed the path Oregano was walking.

These buildings were massive and when looked into, one could see nothing but incredibly busy people hurrying here and there with large stacks of papers in hand. None of them smiling at all, scowls were the only expressions visible on the lot of them. All of their brows were furrowed, and wrinkles upon wrinkles were the extent of their faces. It was truly a sight that put the attitude of this section of the city into perspective.

The same hustle and bustle way of life seemed to take place on the streets below the towers as well. Now that Oregano had moved deeper into the city, he saw a sharp incline in the amount of passersby. Most of the people that Oregano passed along the road now seemed to be in a terrible hurry and briskly walked by him as if they were late to some important meeting.

All of the people he passed were either in fancy clothing or business attire. He noticed that many had their noses pointed up to the sky and looked down at him through what would seem to be their nostrils due to the ridiculous angles at which they held their heads. Harsh judgment was what they cast out upon him out of the corners of their eyes, as they let out 'huffs' of disapproval.

The site of a young man hobbling about with a crutch and a broken leg, having incredibly mismatched and clashing attire and a koala perched on his shoulder did anything but rub the locals in the right way.

Oregano was clearly not up to their level of sophistication. This didn't faze him however in the least bit, and he happily replied to each of the people staring at him with a grin and a nod of his head. He took all this staring to be a sign of him being a 'cool guy' so he was actually quite flattered by all this extra attention he was getting.

"Gosh this place is sooo amazing Polen! We thought Plisboro's city was big but this place blows it clean out of the stinking water!"

Oregano finally shouted not being able to contain his excitement any longer. He and Polen looked around them in amazement at the many sights that seemed infinite in number.

Polen's mouth was agape and the little koala was shocked that such a place even existed. He lowered his 'cool' shades to get a better view but the bright reflection from the sun off the windows made him regret this decision and he quickly slid his shades back up over his eyes.

"Well now, first things first, I think we should go get Fletcher a gift and get that out of the way! Then we can keep exploring once we have that task behind us!"

Oregano exclaimed as he studied the shops that were around him, looking for anything that might catch his eye. After much scanning over the various shops and looking for a nice place to check in, he finally saw a store that caught his interest. The stores name was 'The Mahogany Deluxe' and its sign flashed brightly from the upper story of a nearby building.

"Ah that place sounds rad! Let's check it out Polen!" Oregano shouted with an incredibly excited tone. Polen smiled happily and gave a nod of approval. Even though he enjoyed giving his master a hard time here and there, he loved to see Oregano get excited.

As Oregano and Polen navigated across the busy path trying to get to the building they had just spotted, they were forced to start bobbing and weaving between various crowds of people.

With a broken leg this was exceptionally difficult for Oregano to do, and he often found himself pivoting around one person and finding himself in then in the way of another. These people were all in a hurry just like the people he had walked by earlier and had to halt their progression immediately in order to not topple into the young man with a broken leg before them. Grunts and disapproving tones could be heard by all who were either stopped by Oregano, or from anyone who saw him for that matter.

Oregano began to work up a sweat because of this fast paced traffic of people he was having to move through but after much effort he had finally made it to the front of the building and out of the vicious horde of people swarming the street behind him.

The building had massive glass doors at the front and in black print had the words 'Delightful Commons' written across them in exceptionally fancy font.

"This place really does look delightful!" Oregano agreed with the sign out loud based on what he saw as he peered into the glass doors. He hobbled up to them to get a closer look inside and what he saw was a massive lobby area with beautiful chandeliers, elegant decorations and statues to boot. A spiraling double staircase encompassed a fountain in the middle of the room and soothing music could be heard being played from inside.

Oregano couldn't stand not being inside this magnificent building any longer and opened the glass door before him and waddled inside.

The lobby was even more brilliant now that they were on the inside and Oregano and Polen could only gaze in wonder at their incredible surroundings.

After much inspection of the lobby Oregano quickly noticed however that they were alone in this wonderfully amazing place. He quickly answered his own suspicion though in his head with the fact that everyone here in this hectic city seems too busy to shop so that could explain the emptiness.

Oregano then quickly turned his attention to the dreaded, double spiraling staircase before him with dismay and was about to pout, until he spotted a row of elevators positioned to his left and he happily made his way towards them.

When he reached the row of elevators, Oregano pressed the 'up arrow' presented on the wall and after a quick moment of waiting one of the elevator doors opened up before him. Polen was shocked at this display and was incredibly hesitant as Oregano hobbled inside the elevator and watched the doors behind them close shut. He was gripping Oregano's shoulder tight because he didn't really feel safe in this tiny room he now found himself enclosed within. Stress was getting to the little koala and he made sure to let Oregano know about his anxiety by letting out an array of distraught moans and groans in his master's ear.

"Hey cool your jets my man!" Oregano responded to his koala's display of emotions. "We will only be in here for a little bit. I just can't really see myself making it up all those crazy twisty stairs, so elevators are most definitely the way to go!" Oregano continued as he slowly patted Polen's fuzzy head.

Polen was reassured by his master's calm demeanor on the matter and watched as Oregano hit a button with the number '3' on it.

"Floor two definitely wasn't the shop we are looking for,the sign outside seemed to be a littler higher than that. Hopefully floor three will be the right one!" He exclaimed. "Let's hope so at least." He laughed as he examined the number of floors available in this tower. The number of floors went all the way to 14!

A quick second after the button was pressed the elevator began to rumble as it was pulled upwards along the elevator cords.

Polen was a little freaked out about this shaking, but remembered what Oregano had told him and simply shut his eyes until the moving came to an end. Once it did, he opened his eyes slightly and saw the doors of the elevator miraculously open up, and upon opening revealed a dark room before them.

Oregano scratched the back of his head as he hobbled off the elevator and into the darkness. He was very confused by the atmosphere of this entire floor. It was pitch black and instead of having the elegant theme the lobby had, this level resembled the offices he had seen from the road in the other buildings he looked into earlier. The light coming from the elevator behind him quickly diminished as the doors closed leaving him and Polen in total darkness.

As he looked around his new surroundings for a moment waiting for his eyes to adjust to the darkness he figured the building must just rent out a floor to any company willing to buy it, but that didn't stop him from being curious about why this floor was vacant and dark in the middle of the day, so he began to sneak around on this dark floor looking for answers as to what company owned this floor and what they did here.

Oregano saw that many cubicles were arranged in columns as he limped along looking for anything of interest. He of course knew this floor was not going to have 'The Mahogany Deluxe' on it but his sense of adventure and curiosity was getting the best of him.

As he proceeded through this dark and mysterious office room he found himself face to face with a glass door that separated the room he was currently walking around in to another.

This peaked Oregano's interest, and as he headed to open up the door a muffled voice in the distance could be heard! Oregano jumped slightly in surprise and with this jerking motion ended up hurting his leg. He winced in pain for a moment but didn't make a sound as to not make a scene. He didn't want whoever was talking in the room before him to think he was a 'Weenie Baby Boy' or something.

Then after regaining his composure, Oregano eased up to the door, opened it up, and stepped inside.

He was in one sense thankful that this tower actually had people besides him inside of it, and in another sense incredibly interested in what the person he heard talking and the person he assumed they were talking to were doing hiding in a dark floor like this.

He then let out a soft chuckle as he realized he was also wandering around in very same darkness.

As Oregano followed the voice in the new room he realized that the voice belonged to a man with a great amount of hesitation in his voice. With Oregano's terrible hearing he really couldn't make out all of what the man was saying, but he definitely heard the man repeat the word 'Boss' many times. This was all very intriguing.

Now moving through this new room, Oregano noticed that it was not like the office-like section he had been in before. It was completely vacant except for a few bare tables here and there. As he neared the voice a thin line of light caught his eye! It was coming from underneath a closed door at the end of the room.

"That must be where the voice is coming from Polen!" Oregano whispered to his koala without knowing that Polen had fallen asleep a couple minutes ago due to the darkness and silence that this floor presented him with.

Oregano eventually made his way to the door and as he moved in he decided he should probably ask this person which floor 'The Mahogany Deluxe' was on.

He then began to wonder how he would be able do this task without seeming like a total 'Creepazoid' though. It was in this instant that he realized he would be barging into a closed room, on a dark floor to ask directions from somebody who clearly wanted to be left alone.

This thought alone almost made him bust up with laughter at the thought of what he had almost done. He then started to realize more and more the crazy situation he was in and decided he better just get out now and go back to the elevator.

As he started to turn away though, the conversation inside the room got heated fast causing him to halt his progression. One of the voices was clearly in the room beside him, but the other voice seemed faded and slightly distorted so Oregano guessed this was a call over a Den-Den Mushi. He felt like he should leave because eavesdropping was rude, but what he heard kept him from moving away.

Inside the Mysterious Room

"Ok now where are you calling me from again?!" the voice on the Den-Den Mushi shouted nervously. You could tell he was panicking and not in complete control of his emotions.

"Calm down boss, please calm down! It's like I told you, I am calling from a 'now' vacant floor of a certain shopping tower in the uptown district. I am all alone up here, I'm sure of it." The voice belonging to the worried man Oregano had heard earlier sputtered as quickly as he could to reassure his boss everything was under control.

"Tsch! Alright. It's just that you know very well what would happen to a man of my standing if I were to be found out about."

"Yes of course boss. You know I do."

"Alright then let's get down to business. I am a rather busy man recently with all the scum floating around West Blue lately so I don't have time for chit chat. What is the status on the sabotage plan?"

"Right yes of course boss. I'll fill you in on everything. I just received a call from one of our men. He says the chemical was placed cleanly and everything is going as planned. Everything is going reeeeeally smooth boss."

The man then continued after catching his breath. "The Heavy Weight Bo Stockston will drink from the water bottle at the scrimmage match he has scheduled today at 3:00, the chemical will begin to fatigue him as it goes through his body, and will increase throughout the day. Then by the time his official match is to be held tonight at 8:00 he won't even be able to lift his head up from his shoulders … Thus giving the underdog C.C. Willis the victory by default and giving you the upset winnings that you made your bet on."

"Mmmmhhh perfect. This is what I like to hear. So there is no way that they will know the chemical is in the bottle?"

"Oh no sir, the chemical is odorless and doesn't have a taste at all. Skrullton Labs guarantees it! All it does is emit a slight vapor… but since the water is closed in a water bottle the vapor stream will be too small to detect."

"Mmmmhhh, alright then, good job that is what I like to hear. Well then I can't wait for the big match tonight!"

"Oh, uh huh, yes of course sir, thank you sir."

Now Back to Oregano Still Outside the Room

Oregano stood motionless with his mouth wide open outside of the door. He couldn't believe what he had just heard.

From inside the room he heard a click and knew the conversation was now over. What else could really be said though? He had just heard a dastardly scheme! A dastardly scheme directed at none other than Bo Stockston! West Blue's Heavy Weight Boxing Champion for five years running! A man so mean and so tough that anyone to enter the ring with him starts trembling uncontrollably!

Bo was someone who Oregano was very familiar with, although he himself wasn't a big boxing fan, his older brother Dill was Bo's self-proclaimed biggest fan! Everything Oregano knew about the boxer his brother had told him.

Now knowing Bo was a target, Oregano knew he had to put a stop to this madness! It was time for him to save his brother's idle and most importantly a Boxing Legend and innocent man from getting cheated by some underhanded group!

Oregano's face became determined as he quietly turned towards the exit behind him that led into the main office section he was wandering around in before.

After making it all the way back through and finally back to the row of elevators, Oregano quickly hit the 'down' arrow for the elevator.

He realized that shopping for Fletcher would have to wait because of this crazy scenario he had now found himself in and watched as the elevator doors finally opened up before him.

He eased in with a slight stagger and quickly pressed the lobby button. The doors of the elevator responded to this action by closing and eventually hiding the floor with the evil man on it who had such heinous connections. Oregano was thankful that he escaped without any confrontation with the man and he let out a sigh of relief.

As the elevator began to rumble about as it sunk past the second floor heading for the lobby, a startled Polen let out a grumpy tone in Oregano's ear.

"Poleeeen! Were you sleeping?!" Oregano bellowed causing quite the echo in the enclosed elevator they were inside.

Polen responded to this outburst from his master with a yawn and a lazy display of smacking his lips.

"Polen you stinker! You missed out on the whole crazy conversation and everything!" Oregano cried as he wiggled around in agony.

Polen gave Oregano a blank stare showing he really wasn't all too concerned.

"Ayeee Poleeeen! Don't you give me that faceeeeeeee!" Oregano howled as his expression quickly changed from a pout to a mischievous grin. "I think I might be able to get some emotion out of you when I tell you where we are heading!" Oregano spoke up in a sly manner as the elevator finally came to a stop.

Polen tilted his head at his master's comment and waited for Oregano to stop grinning goofily and spit out where they were heading already.

Oregano stepped out of the elevator and into the lobby and was just about to tell Polen where they were heading when he suddenly noticed he was face to face with a suited teenage boy.

The boy was short in stature but appeared to be on the stocky side in terms of weight. He had blonde hair that was short everywhere except for at the front of his head where a massive curl was plastered onto his forehead with gel. The boy had a pale and freckled face and as for attire he wore a light brown pin striped suit with a pink and white polka – dotted tie.

The youth's face was incredibly surprised as he stared up at Oregano and Polen. They were nothing like the people that normally frequented the 'Delightful Commons.' Especially due to the fact that Oregano had a rifle strapped on his back!

"Oh, oh, uh, my goodness! My deepest apologizes sir, you must have come in while I was in the restroom. I'm Melvin the Bellboy here at 'Delightful Commons' did you manage to find everything alright?" Melvin muttered nervously keeping his wobbling eyes fixated on Oregano's rifle.

"Hey no sweat Melvin! Oh and I actually didn't! I will be back rest assured though! 'Mahogany Deluxe' has my name all over it!" Oregano exclaimed as he gave Melvin a thumbs up!

Melvin gulped as he blankly nodded his head. "Oh is that so, well good to hear then, we would love your business…"

"Oh! Melvin could you possibly tell me how to get to the Boxing Arena?!" Oregano quickly replied, changing the subject dramatically but realizing he needed to know how to get there so he could save the day!

Polen's ears perked up instantly upon hearing Oregano ask about the Boxing Arena and jumped off Oregano's shoulder and onto the ground to scurry around in excitement.

Just like Dill, Polen was a tremendous boxing fan. In fact watching Bo Stockston box was a big part of Polen and Dills relationship. They bonded over watching the sport together. Bo was a hero of Polen's just like he was one of Dills.

Melvin was taken aback by this seemingly spontaneous question but while keeping his eyes on Oregano's rifle happily replied as to not make a possible 'Crazed Gunman' upset. "Sure sir, you will take a left on the main street just outside and follow it until you reach 'Susana Avenue' then once there follow it until you reach 'Big Quail Lane' and you can't miss it. This will be taking you from 'Uptown' to 'Downtown'. "

"Oh wow thanks so much Melvin!" Oregano shouted as he held his hand up for a high five. Melvin slowly reacted to this request with a hesitant pat of his hand against Oregano's.

Oregano didn't mind the weak attempt at a high five one bit though! It was all the same to him.

"How long will it take to get there Melvin? I am in a hurry! I need to be there before 3:00!" Oregano continued, still probing Melvin for this desperate information.

Melvin looked at Oregano uneasily as he softly replied, not wanting to say anything that could possibly be upsetting information. "Well it will probably take close to thirty minutes to get there from here, oh and as for time… its 2:20 you are going to be cutting it mighty close sir."

"Oh craaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaap!" Oregano shouted at the top of his lungs!

This shouting caused Melvin to practically faint from fear, expecting to surely be shot now by the possible 'Crazed Gunman' before him that he was now almost certain was the case.

"Aye I am crippled too! This is going to be pushing it for sure!" Oregano exclaimed as he snapped his fingers quickly and he turned to the exit. Polen came running at the sound of this snap. He was going to be as obedient as possible now that he knew he was going to get to see a boxing match in the flesh.

"Haha! We can make it though huh Polen?!" Oregano laughed as he headed to the exit with a determined smile.

Melvin was speechless at what had just happened before him and watched as Oregano made it to the exit and opened up the door.

As Oregano stepped out the door, he quickly turned around and shouted back into the lobby at Melvin. "Thanks again man! I owe you one! When I get back I'll get a present for you and Fletcher both in the 'Mahogany Deluxe.' Oh, oh, oh! Also you have a really weird guy that you might need to call the authorities on up on the creepy dark third floor. See ya!" and with that Oregano let the door fall behind him leaving Melvin in complete and utter confusion.

So many thoughts were now floating in Melvin's head. Who in the world was that? Why did he have a koala with him? Why was the koala wearing a baseball hat and shades? Who was this Fletcher fellow? Was he serious about a 'weird' guy being up on the third floor? And ultimately who was he of all people to call some guy on the third floor 'weird'?

It then suddenly hit him. "A dark and creepy third floor?" Melvin muttered to himself. "What did he mean by that? 3rd floor is home to a new and booming agency! There should be employees hustling all over the place up there, why would it be dark at 2:20?"

This began to rub Melvin the wrong way more than anything Oregano had presented him with, so he walked over to the row of elevators pressed the button and when the doors opened he pressed the 3rd floor button. He was going to see what on earth was going on up there.

Outside the Boxing Arena!

Oregano had finally made it to the Boxing Arena thanks to Melvin's directions! He had no idea what the time was though. Every person he asked on the way turned their heads in disgust and gave him no answer.

This made his adrenaline start to pump vigorously as he huffed and puffed up to the main entrance of the Boxing Arena. His leg was aching like mad due to all the moving he was doing today but he had to suck it up because there was no time to waste.

Polen all the while was jittery beyond belief with excitement. He couldn't believe he was going to see Bo Stockston! He made sure to express his joy by squeaking at incredibly high frequencies, each squeak was naturally getting progressively higher in frequency as Oregano neared the arena.

As Oregano finally made it to the main entrance of the arena, a man with an incredibly pronounced twang in his voice spoke up to him as he passed by the booth the man was sitting at. "Ready to see the fight huh?" The man muttered lazily. Oregano glanced over at the man to see that he had a cap on over his eyes keeping him from seeing what was around him. The security was obviously not top notch, but it was just a scrimmage match so Oregano decided to cut him some slack because of that. Even though he was blatantly carrying a rifle into the arena.

"Oh yeah for sure man! Is it about to start?" Oregano replied to the man wondering what his answer would be when suddenly a bell rang out from the arena! 'Ding, ding, ding!' it chimed.

"It just did sonny!" the man at the booth laughed. "Ya better hurry now! It isn't gonna be much of a match for Bo today... He will have his opponent out cold before you know it!"

"Ayeee!" Oregano shouted as he quickly hobbled into the arena. Holding back the pain that his leg was giving off as best as he could.

Now Inside the Arena!

Once inside Oregano wobbled through the large hallway area that surrounded the entire arena in a circular fashion. He was heading towards one of the many entrances leading to the seats surrounding the ring. Picking one at random he knew he didn't have time to be picky. The entrance he chooses was 'J5'. Once he walked through the short hallway leading from the encircling path and into the main stadium area he saw him!

Bo Stockston was in the ring jabbing rapidly at some random small- fry looking fellow. However most normal people would look like a small-fry compared to Bo as well.

Bo stood in at 11 feet in height and was nothing but solid ripped and bulging muscles. He had dark black skin and for his hair style he had thick black corn-rows that stuck out wildly at the ends in every direction. His face was dead serious, complete self-control and a never ending feeling of power could be seen in his eyes. His face in general and eyes especially were permanently swollen from the boxing life he lived due to taking so many hits over his career. He had rough scruff for a beard on his sideburns but that wasn't the case for his other facial hair. He had a full and bushy goatee and mustache combo that hung all the way down to his chest.

For his outfit he was currently shirtless which revealed his incredibly toned core. He wore pitch black boxing gloves and underneath them white tape could be seen coming out as it wrapped up his massive forearms about halfway up his arm. He wore bright red athletic shorts with a thick black stripe going up either side, and for shoes he sported black boxing shoes with bright red laces.

On the ropes behind him in his corner of the ring one could see his red warm up jacket thrown over top of the ropes and a simple white wife-beater as well.

Oregano then looked around at all the seats in the stadium around him and saw that there wasn't much of a turn out at all. Just a few people sitting in the nose-bleed sections and a few kids ditching class he assumed in the front rows watching the pummeling that Bo was dishing out on his 'nobody' opponent. The guy was really just a warm up for Bo since it was a scrimmage and all. Bo was just getting loose with him.

Oregano then watched as Polen leaped off his shoulder and scurried down many steps until he made it to the front row where he joined in with the group of kids ditching class to watch the match up front.

Then quickly turning his attention back to the ring after checking his surroundings he began to look for a water bottle. It wasn't long before he finally spotted Bo's water bottle that was placed at his corner of the ring.

"Whew alright time to save the day!" Oregano exclaimed heroically as he picked up his crutch and hoped he could somehow sneak down and swipe the water bottle away so that no one would drink from it.

Suddenly the bell was rung again however showing that round 1 was now over. The two boxers naturally then retreated to their sides of the ring. Oregano's eyes bugged out in shock at this and knew he had to act fast!

Gunfire suddenly rang out through the stadium with a 'bang!' and the water bottle fell over, leaking water all over the ring. Bo was just a couple steps away from reaching for it when this happened.

Everyone jumped out of their seats in terror and searched for where the gunner was at. All eyes fell on Oregano who had taken his rifle out and fired at the bottle making sure the water wouldn't be ingested by Bo.

A referee and a security guard spotted Oregano before anyone else and were still pointing up at him.

Oregano held his hands up and was about to explain why he did what he did but suddenly in front of him appeared Bo Stockston! The massive man came out of nowhere in an instant! Oregano had just seen him in standing in the ring and then in an instant he had bolted at him full force with his right fist rearing backwards ready for a mighty jab.

"Wait I can explain man!" Oregano uttered as he hoped to stop Bo from smashing his fist directly through his face.

Bo's eyes were dead set and serious however and Oregano's words didn't stop his progression.

Oregano took a big gulp that he was convinced might be his last as he closed his eyes tighter than ever before ready for impact, when suddenly an elderly man's voice chimed up loudly from down at the ring.

"Stop Bo! I believe that young man just did you a favor!"

Once Bo heard this voice he redirected his fist that was already heading for Oregano's face and instead jabbed the air right next to Oregano's head.

The sheer force of the punch just being next to his head knocked Oregano over and on to the ground. His one 'good' leg couldn't keep him steady and standing unfortunately.

He hit the ground with a thud and was scared to open his eyes but when he finally did he could only watch as Bo stared hatefully into the ring he was at just moments ago. The elderly man who had called him was standing in the middle of the ring and pointing to the water that had leaked out from the bottle. The referee and everyone in the arena were speechless. A vapor like substance was being emitted into the air from the water spilled out onto the ring.

Oregano desperately tried to pick himself up but the pain in his leg had finally gotten to the point where he couldn't position himself to do so. This wasn't a problem for Bo however as he threw off his boxing gloves and picked Oregano up from the hood of his windbreaker and set him up right. Oregano reached down and picked up his crutch and was thankful to be on his feet again.

"What in the hell was that in my water?! Best tell me how you knew it was in there too punk... We clear?!" Bo questioned sternly to Oregano.

Oregano scratched his head as he let off a smile. "Whew! Wow let's see… where do I begin?!"

(To be continued!)

**A/N: Hey everyone! I hope you enjoyed reading this chapter of Oregano! Things got heated this chapter for sure! Next chapter is going to get even hotter! Expect a ton of action and revelations as well!

Also please do review - I love to hear what you guys think and have to say!**


	16. Oregano Chapter 3 Part 3

Disclaimer: We do not own One Piece in any way.

Uh-Oh Look Out Oregano! Oion Bay Packs a Punch! Part Three 

By: peanutbutterlung (Whale)

In the Boxing Arena Stands

"And that's pretty much all I know man!"

Oregano exclaimed with his hands extended outright towards Bo, showing he was both out of information to give on the whole water ordeal, and overall very confused by the information he had presented as well.

Bo responded to Oregano's information about the whole sabotage situation and how he somehow stumbled onto this knowledge in the 'Delightful Commons' with a piercing stare.

"Ay that sounds like some mad farfetched shit son! ... But shoot, you straight up went through all that trouble of coming down here, and you even had the balls to fire a damn rifle in front of all these people in a public setting too, so I will give you props for that."

Bo finally blurted this comment out after sizing Oregano up and down before him.

"Haha! Thanks man! I had to do something drastic so you wouldn't take a sip of that water!"

Oregano replied as he scratched the back of his head. He then noticed that most of the people in the arena, although quite few in number had migrated from their seats and were now surrounding himself and Bo as they spoke about the situation at hand.

Then suddenly from out of the crowd emerged the elderly man that had called out to Bo from the ring before. Surprisingly right behind him came Polen trotting up as well. He was sprinting through the passage the older man had made through the crowd of onlookers set up around Oregano and Bo.

"Ayeee Polen! Come here you sucker!"

Oregano exclaimed once he saw his koala sprinting out of the crowd towards the scene. A wide grin began to spread on his face as he closed his eyes tight and expected to receive a loving jump into his arms from his fuzzy pal. But he soon realized that Polen was taking an awfully long time to reach him, so he peaked open his eyes and his heart sank. Polen was scrambling all over Bo and nuzzling all about! Bo began to glare back and forth between Polen and Oregano until he finally spoke up.

"Shit son, does this fur ball belong to you?" A slight tone of irritation could be heard in his voice.

Oregano began to pooch his lips to the side slyly as he whispered. "Yeaaaaah man he is a big fan of yours." Then with a laugh he continued. "I should have known he was running towards you!"

"You said this cat is a fan of mine?! Well damn, alright then that changes things." Bo replied as he raised his massive hand up to stop the hyper koala's frantic scurrying on his massive body. He then picked him up and set him on his shoulder with a thump. "Ay yo, now listen up straight, you betta calm it down cat. I don't need your crazed vibe."

Polen quickly respected Bo's command and sat on his shoulder as still as he could be. One might confuse the koala for a statue if they hadn't seen him spazzing out just seconds earlier. Polen wasn't about to get on the wrong side of his beloved boxing idol.

"Dang it Poleeeeeeeeen you never listen that well for me! "Oregano cried out as he then continued, somehow switching gears completely after hearing what Bo had been calling his pet. "Oh and Bo he is a koala by the way, haha not a cat!"

Bo's cold eyes began to squint towards Oregano and he was about to respond when a sudden clearing of a throat interrupted the back and forth that had been going on between Oregano and Bo. This got the attention of everyone still present at this wild scene taking place. It had come from the elderly man from the ring earlier. He had been standing patiently amongst Oregano and Bo as they spoke but he was now ready to speak. All eyes hit him once he cleared his throat one more time a little louder than last making sure he had everyone's attention.

"I believe we have veered off of the topic we should be most concerned with now gentlemen. Don't you agree?" The man exclaimed.

The elderly man wore a light blue fleece sweatshirt along with khaki pants. He sported a pair of dark brown dress shoes as well which matched a dark brown belt around his waist. His hair was very thin and white and he wore it in a comb-over fashion, most likely to hide a slightly visible receding hairline. The man's complexion was very pale except for the occasional liver spots here and there that decorated his skin. He had a very wrinkly face as well that made expressions on his face stand out a great deal due to the extra lines upon lines that surrounded his every facial gesture.

"The names Vanhoogen." The older man continued. "I am Bo's coach and I would like to start by thanking you… Oh wait, I'm sorry young man we don't even know your name do we?"

Oregano smiled as he nodded towards Vanhoogen. "It's nice to meet you! My name's Oregano and my pet koala over there is Polen!"

Vanhoogen replied with a nod upon hearing this and then proceeded with the conversation. "Oregano and Polen huh? Well good to know your names now at least… But there really is no time to dilly dally, I heard your explanation of the whole event Oregano, and I must say that a report must be sent out immediately to catch the scoundrels that tried to pull off this heinous act!"

"Shit! Forget a report I can handle this on my own! No need getting the marines or police in on this!" Bo quickly combated as he stared heatedly at Vanhoogen.

"Now Bo let's think about this you can't…" Vanhoogen began as he tried to calm down his boxer but stopped once he saw a man step out of the crowd towards Oregano, Bo and himself.

This new man who had now approached from the crowd was making quite an uneasy expression. His face was slightly greenish and upon closer examination one could see that his face and entire head for that matter was covered in sweat. As for the man's attire he wore a tight off-white dress shirt and a pair of dark brown slacks. As he stood out from the crowd his posture was strikingly awkward. His entire body was hunched over to the left while his head oppositely fell to the right making his neck look very uncomfortable.

"Yikes you look terrible man!" Oregano exclaimed towards the man who continued to stand before them.

The new man's lips quickly curled as he turned his tilted head towards Oregano. "Sorry I'm a little sick at the moment."

"Shoot I'm sorry to hear that. I hope you get better soon!" Oregano responded when suddenly Vanhoogen broke the conversation up.

"Like that's an excuse for that ridiculous way of holding yourself! Stand up straight young man you are making my old joints ache just by looking at you! Anyways why have you stepped out of the crowd?" Vanhoogen questioned.

The sickly man hung his head low as he replied. "I'm sorry I can't do that. I wish I could but this illness is very serious... Anyways, the reason I have stepped out is because I have some information I'm sure you will all like to hear. I was just leaving the restroom earlier because I was feeling so nauseous, and when I came out I saw a man running past me in the hallway talking on a Den Den Mushi. He was talking about the failed plan with the water."

"Yo spill it quick! What did that piece of shit say?" Bo quickly questioned. Rage had filled him to the brim and was rapidly overflowing inside of him. He was ready to unleash it wherever he could.

"Yes of course he was talking to what I assume were members of his group and they all sounded incredibly upset. I heard them say they were going to meet at the Southburn Storage Vaults to regroup. It was Vault '32' where they said they would be." The sickly man responded to the highly intimidating Bo.

"That's all I need!" Bo shouted as he tossed Polen off his shoulder and over to Oregano.

Polen cried and squirmed viciously as he flew through the air. The crying was not because he was scared of falling or anything, but because he had just been separated from Bo.

Oregano eyes widened as he saw his koala flying in the air towards him. His leg was still aching worse than ever and he hadn't taken a new pain pill because of all the commotion going on. He knew that setting himself up to catch Polen and not fall over was going to hurt!

"Poleeeeeeeeen I gotcha partner!" Oregano shouted as he braced himself for the catch of the wallowing airborne marsupial.

Impact was soon made and Oregano's leg quickly gave way leaving him off-balance. But his crutch managed to sway and somehow support his weight as he pivoted about on it and scooped Polen up onto his shoulder.

"Oh wow smooth!" Oregano shouted as began to laugh his head off at almost falling down.

"Bo come back here we need to think this over!" Vanhoogen uttered towards his boxer only to get a blunt answer in return.

"Hell naw, they brought this shit upon themselves. I'm gonna go beat their asses!"

And with that Bo made his way out of the arena in a flash. He had a target and was going to confront them head on. There was no stopping him now. His knuckles had an intense desire to indent their impressions in the faces of all the bastards that tried to cripple him today.

Polen began to wiggle as he sat on Oregano's shoulder and looked out to where Bo had once stood. His idol had left the scene and he was incredibly sad that he only got to spend the little amount of time with him that he had.

"Yo Polen I'm sure he will be back buddy! Don't worry alright?" Oregano spoke as he turned his head towards his koala on his shoulder trying his best to comfort his pet.

Polen smiled and nodded back towards his master and his wiggling stopped as well.

Vanhoogen stood quietly as he shook his head which was now lowered to the floor. Suddenly he muttered. "There's no stopping Bo now. But things will still have to be done to alert the authorities. It will need to be fast too since he has already started doing things his own way… By the way, thank you for the information on the whereabouts of the perpetrators sir." Vanhoogen directed towards the sickly man.

"Don't mention it." The sickly man replied when suddenly his face became ever greener than it already was. "Please excuse me!" He urgently exclaimed however as he hurried out of sight most likely heading back to the restroom.

Vanhoogen sighed as he began looking around at everyone who was still gathered around him. Everyone present was either some snot nosed kid skipping class, or a slob of a person who didn't really look like they would be of help at all. He then turned his attention to Oregano. A young man with a broken leg, who was currently laughing wildly with his pet koala. Was he really any better of a choice for Vanhoogen to try and work with? After a moment of debating it in his head he decided to take a chance with Oregano. At least he seemed to be efficient with a rifle.

Turning back to the crowd Vanhoogen shouted. "Now everyone please go out and contact anyone you can and tell them about the situation that is currently taking place here. The quicker we get word moving the better!"

There were a few groans and grunts from the crowd upon hearing this and they all slowly dispersed from the scene. Mainly because they realized there really wasn't anything left of interest for them to see go down anymore.

"I know I won't be able to count on them…" Vanhoogen muttered as he then turned back to Oregano.

"Will you still help Oregano?" he questioned.

"Heck yea you know it man!" Oregano responded quickly to Vanhoogen with a determined nod. "Where do we start?"

"Well I already asked the referee to go and find a Den Den Mushi for us to use back when we thought you were trying to assassinate someone earlier, so he should be back soon with that and we can then proceed with calling the authorities."

Oregano gave him a thumbs up upon hearing this news. "Oh yikes sorry I guess that did give the vibe of an assassination huh?!" Oregano apologized.

Vanhoogen held his hand up showing he was not at fault. "We know better now so all is well. You were a hero today, we can all look past the scare you gave us because of that."

Oregano smiled after hearing this and he then quickly realized that he finally had time to take his pain pills and stop his leg from aching so much.

Reaching into the pocket of his windbreaker he felt around for the bottle of pain killers and grabbed it.. Leaning his weight over on his crutch Oregano positioned himself steadily and applied force to the sealed top of the bottle until the it popped and twisted off. He looked down at the white oblong pills inside and quickly realized he had nothing to drink to help the pills go down easier. This was a major problem because he wasn't about to take them without water because the sensation of taking pills by themselves gave him the big time creeps.

He looked up to see Vanhoogen watching him with a confused expression on his face.

"I need something to drink with my pills Vanhoogen!" Oregano pleaded to the elderly man before him in hopes that a solution would soon be provided because this leg pain he currently had to put up with was incredibly whack!

Vanhoogen sighed as he responded. "Just take them without any water, we need to be ready for when the referee gets back so you can give your story and all the details. We don't have time to waste on something so trivial as something to help you take pills with!"

Oregano let out a drawn out dramatic noise in opposition to Vanhoogen's comment to show he wasn't feeling that idea one bit.

Vanhoogen let out an incredibly raspy sigh in response to Oregano's dramatic display of not wanting to take his pills by themselves and muttered. "Fine, fine, fine, I'll go get you a drink. With a broken leg even if I told you where to go it would still take you longer than an old man like me."

"Ohhh whewie that is really nice of you! Thanks Vanhoogen you are a life saver!" Oregano replied to the elderly man as he slowly watched him walk out of the arena through a hallway that led out of the inner section of the stadium.

"Blasted kid! Who does he think he is taking advantage of a legendary boxing coach like me? Is he completely oblivious or what?" Vanhoogen mumbled to himself as he left to find Oregano a drink. With each step he slowly lost more and more hope with pairing up with this young man in this situation.

Oregano and Polen were now all by themselves in the massive stadium. It was very quiet and amazingly still compared to how it was earlier with the ruckus and commotion that had been occurring.

"Goodness Polen has this been a day or what?" Oregano laughed as he wobbled over to the stadium benches near him and took a seat. He really needed to get off his leg for a while and upon sitting down a feeling of relief filled him completely.

Polen happily nodded in response to Oregano's claim about the day and proceeded to hop off his master's shoulder and onto the bench beside him. He was exceptionally happy that he had gotten to meet one of his idols today and it really showed in how he carried himself. His posture was incredibly upright and proud. He had a noticeable pep in his step that Oregano soon noticed as well as he hopped around the benches exploring the stadium to see what he could find.

"Haha you are being a straight up goober Polen!" Oregano laughed in response to his koala's trotting about. His comment and laugh echoed in the eerily vacant stadium.

Polen began to pout at Oregano's teasing and replied to him by sticking out his tongue.

"Aye Polen you know I'm only fooling ya!" Oregano reassured his pet when suddenly he heard a series of footsteps getting louder coming from behind him.

"Oh shoot that old man is faster than he gave himself credit for!" Oregano chuckled as he turned to thank Vanhoogen for the drink.

Much to his surprise though, the man now standing before him wasn't Vanhoogen, but the referee that they were expecting! The referee was a rather chubby individual and was huffing and puffing trying to catch his breath. He wore the traditional white and black stripped referee uniform and a whistle hung from his neck. He had rather wavy auburn hair and his facial structure was remarkably bony in contrast to the rest of him being chubby.

"Excuse me where is Mr. Vanhoogen?" The referee questioned impatiently and out of breath towards Oregano.

"Oh dag he is out getting something for me to drink man." Oregano replied quickly due to the rushed vibe he was picking up from the referee.

"Oh no! The old man said he would be here. I am in a hurry, he knows that! I need to give him this den den mushi and skedaddle! I have another match to referee and at this rate I am not going to make it." The referee blurted quickly in disgust.

"Shoot that stinks! Hey man if you are in a hurry you can just leave the den den mushi with me. I am working with Vanhoogen and all." Oregano offered in hopes of helping the obviously stressed out man before him.

"Oh yes that would be wonderful!" The referee shouted in relief as he tossed the den den mushi to the seated Oregano down a couple benches before him. "Take care now!" And with that he bolted up the stairs and out of sight loudly huffing and puffing with every step he took.

Meanwhile a terrified den den mushi was hurdling towards Oregano. Due to Oregano's earlier practice catching Polen, and the added stability of sitting down he managed to catch the snail with ease though. All the while laughing towards Polen who was now back from exploring the stadium and was currently crawling around him. "Why is everyone throwing things at me today? Ya know what I mean Polen?!"

Polen quickly had a flashback of being thrown through the air and shivered at the memory. He knew he was lucky that Oregano of all people managed to catch him and not be injured in the process.

Oregano then looked down upon the den den mushi that now was in his hand. Sweat drops of relief were rolling down the snail, he was very thankful to have been caught.

After waiting for around five minutes Oregano began to wonder what was up with Vanhoogen. "Goodness what is taking him so long!" Oregano wondered as he looked at the many entrances into the arena around him seeing if the old man would appear on the scene.

"Well I guess I can make the call without him." Oregano laughed as he put his hand up to his chin. "Ayeee but I don't know any local numbers here on Oion!" Oregano gasped. "Oh wait! I know! I'll call Dill and he will connect us! Hah plus he won't believe who I got to meet today! He will be so jealous!"

And with that Oregano began to dial the number of the Plisboro Cove Security Force. Unbeknownst to him he accidentally hit a wrong number or two, or three in the process of dialing in all his excitement.

Inside a Certain South Blue Prison's Kitchen Quarters

'Bluriiiiing! Bluriiiiing!' A den den mushi rang out from a wooden counter inside a dimly lit kitchen. The poor lighting in this kitchen along with it being incredibly clustered made visibility very difficult. Strings of sausages and other meats hung from the ceiling, and produce was stacked in piles in every direction you looked.

"A call on the den den mushi! Oh me oh my when was the last time I received a call down here?!" A surprised chef excitedly jumped about. This chef's body was very cylindrical and his face was as round as could be. The chef adorned a white chef apron over a marine uniform and sported a short chef's hat. He had bushy blonde hair that stuck out from under his hat and he had thick eyebrows with a thick mustache to match. He had rosy cheeks and freckles as well.

He quickly left the meal he was currently preparing and began to search through the hanging meats to find a way to get to the ringing snail.

"Oh phooey if this place wasn't such a mess I would already have found that den den mushi!" The chef chimed as he enthusiastically snuck through his kitchen.

When he finally made it to the den den mushi it had already rang close to ten times if not more. The round chef desperately picked the snail up and held it up and began to speak.

The Call

"Hello there! I'm sorry for the wait what can I help you with today!" The chef blurted. His excitement for having a phone call was not hidden well. Down in the kitchen of a marine run prison he never got any calls.

On the other end he could hear Oregano talking with Polen, their conversation was faint but he could make it out. The chef heard Oregano say. "No Polen you can't play with the snail right now! Hey put him down! He has a job to doooo!"

Feeling like he wasn't heard on the other end the chef tried again, this time a little louder to get the callers attention.

"HELLO THERE?"

Oregano had finally pulled the den den mushi away from Polen who was being a rascal at the time and this time managed to hear the voice on the other end.

"Hey! About time you picked up! This is an emergency line you know? I need Dill!" Oregano quickly replied.

"Dill! Oh yes of course let me see if I can find a bag for you sir! It might take me a while but I am sure I have it around here somewhere!" The round chef sang as he happily ran off to search for a bag of dill in his pantry closets.

"Thanks!" Oregano responded. He really didn't hear what the chef had said in its entirety because Polen had come back for revenge and had ambushed him from his blind spot and was currently chewing and scratching the top of his head.

"Polen cut it out! I'm gonna tell Dill you are actin' up you sucker!" Oregano threatened making Polen hop off his head and pout.

"Nice! Now just give me a minute and then we can play. This call is super important!" Oregano said with a smile.

It was about that time that Oregano heard a voice pick up on the other end of the call. The voice was incredibly different than the chef's exuberant voice, and it didn't sound like his brother either! This voice was very dull and depressing which took Oregano by surprise when he heard it.

"Dill is that you? Hey sorry bro I didn't hear what you just said! And why the heck are you talking like that by the way? Do you have a cold or something?" Oregano questioned.

The voice responded slowly with a tone that sounded like every word was a hassle to repeat. "I asked if you knew how to cook this Peo-Tai stuff."

"Peo-Tai! Oh yeah that sounds fantastic right about now!" Oregano responded happily. "Is it packaged?"

"Umm, yeah, it has a clear plastic wrapper on top… and I think the directions are telling me not to remove it, isn't that bad?" The voice responded. It sounded like the speaker on the other end was getting slightly annoyed.

"Aye plastic wrap huh?! I gotcha covered! The key is to get that stuff a heavy amount of ventilation!" Oregano replied with a laugh.

"Uh, well I don't see any corners to lift up anywhere. It's all one consistent body, should I just bite a hole in it?" the voice questioned, sounding more and more annoyed the more the conversation carried on.

"Whatever it takes! Ventilation is key! Once you get that covered, pop that treat in a microwave and you are set!"

"Um, alright I'm biting a hole in it now." The voice responded, slurring their speech a little due to the package of Peo-Tai being in their mouth.

"Ha that's awesome man! By the way is Dill ready to talk yet? It is really important!" Oregano questioned.

It was about that time however that a familiar voice called out in the boxing arena taking Oregano's attention away from the call.

Back in the Boxing Arena (Outside of the Call)

"Oregano here's your water…" Vanhoogen stammered. The hesitation in his voice came from the fact that Oregano had the den den mushi and was apparently talking on it.

"Thanks so much Vanhoogen! My leg was about to drive me crazy! I was about to start tearing up!" Oregano laughed in response.

"Huff, don't mention lad." Vanhoogen said as he handed a cup of water to Oregano. "At least you have already contacted the authorities for us so we aren't too far behind on time."

Oregano took the glass from Vanhoogen and threw the pain pills he had in his hand in his mouth and downed them with a big gulp of water. "Whew awesome, I can't wait until these bad boys take affect!"

Oregano then looked down to the den den mushi and then back to Vanhoogen as he spoke.

"Ahh and shoot and I haven't gotten in contact with anyone yet." Oregano sighed. "I didn't know any local numbers, so I called my hometown's security force to see if they could help, but then there was this dude with some serious Peo-Tai problems and I had to help him… And I'm still waiting for this other guy to go find my brother!"

Vanhoogen's face seemed to generate wrinkles of stress by the second as he listened to Oregano tell him what he had been doing while he was out getting water for him. Then he reached out to Oregano without a word and scooped up the den den mushi from him. He held it up to his ear and didn't hear a sound.

"Oregano, I fear no one is at the other end. I will simply call the Oion marine base here on the island now. Thanks for ... trying to help."

Oregano smiled back at Vanhoogen as he nodded and spoke. "Get em' Vanhoogen!"

Then looking over at Polen, Oregano grinned as he called out to him. "We will have to tell Dill about meeting Bo some other time huh Polen?"

Polen began to scurry about happily. He couldn't wait to hear Dill react to knowing that he had met their very own boxing idol.

Then suddenly from Vanhoogen's direction a flustered voice called out from the den den mushi. Vanhoogen had managed to call the Oion marine base.

The voice started out the conversation very brash as he spoke. "Yes! Yes! We know! We are getting calls from across half the city it seems like! We are working on resolving the fires and putting them out as quickly as possible. Please just evacuate away from harm's way and stay safe! We are dispatching aid to assist you!"

Oregano and Polen turned their heads to Vanhoogen who had a flabbergasted expression on his face. "Fires? What on earth are you talking about?" Vanhoogen questioned quickly.

"Have you not been outside to see the smoke?! Get out and find safety! Most of Oion City is up in flames! They were all started by some heinous unknown rookie pirate named Oregano trying to make a name for himself!"

Oregano was currently drinking the remainder of his water as he listened to the conversation at hand and when he heard his name mentioned he spewed water everywhere. He and Polen's eyes were as big as saucers.

"Now wait a second, that just can't be! He has been with me the whole…" Vanhoogen tried to combat the marine on the other end but was cut off before he could finish.

"I'm sorry sir I must go attend to the fires now! Oh damn! Even the marine base seems to be on fire now!" And with that the call was dropped and was over.

Vanhoogen was completely taken aback. He was shocked at what he had heard. Not only was the city on fire, but Oregano was the one at blame and it was revealed that this happy and upbeat young man was a pirate as well! All of this on top of the fact that he couldn't inform the marines about the water scandal made his eye rapidly twitch.

"Well, I don't know about you Vanhoogen, but I sure didn't see that coming!" Oregano finally blurted out after a few seconds of awkward silence.

Vanhoogen was incredibly upset at everything happening around him. In all his years he couldn't remember a time where so many terrible events hit one after the other in such succession. Why this terrible of chain of unlucky events decided to occur now and all at once was very disturbing to him.

"We need to act on our own now Oregano! The marines are of no help at the moment. We must both check on Bo and inform the marines of their unjust claims about you! Let's get moving!" Vanhoogen hollered. The stress was very noticeable in his voice.

Oregano reached over to his crutch that was propped up against the stadium bench he was sitting at and pressed down on it as he rose to his feet. The effects of the pain medication were not going to kick in for a while, but he has to suck it up. The fact that the fires could likely spread to the boxing arena was more than enough reason to get out of there. They really had no idea in what relation the fires were to them. For all they knew the flames could very well be right outside!

"Let's go Vanhoogen!" Oregano responded with a determined face. He reached his arm out to Polen and the koala pounced on it and ran up his arm to sit on his shoulder. He then took a couple steps forward to show Vanhoogen he was ready and Vanhoogen nodded and turned up the stairs. Oregano was right behind him, biting his lip every time his leg began to ache. He was trying his best to not give into the throbbing pain as he exited the stadium as quickly as he could.

Meanwhile at the Southburn Storage Vaults

Bo had finally reached the Southburn vaults. He had sprinted the whole way from the arena, this feat was nothing for an athlete of his caliber though. Even being as big as he was, the shear amount of power inside his muscles pulled his body along at frightening speeds. He was like an iron locomotive chugging along.

The vaults were located three miles south from Oion City, and were on the southern shore of the island. Most of the vaults were used by the rich residents on the island to store their valuable belongings, but due to their location on the coast many had been modified into freezer units for fishermen to keep their daily catches in.

"You all just had to pick the coast to hide ya coward asses at didn't you? Making me run all the way out here and shit." Bo grunted as he gritted his teeth.

He continued to run through the rows of vaults on either side of him looking for the one numbered '32'. As he passed each vault he longed to see that number show up in his sight. The urge to strike down the group behind the attempt of sabotage on him was fueling the fire inside him.

As he passed the vaults the numbers rose gradually on each side of him. Continuing down the row he was on the vault numbered '32' finally caught his eye.

"About damn time!" He shouted as he approached the vault he had been searching for. The vault seemed to be made of a light metal. A large portion of it was rusted from to being so close to the ocean breeze. The vault was what seemed to be about forty by forty feet in diameter.

The vault had two entrances in front. One was a regular metallic door on the far right side, and the other was a large vertically sliding door that took up the remaining room on the front of the structure.

Bo quickly ran over and tugged at the doorknob on the regular door, but as he expected it was locked.

"Ha looks like I have to make this entrance one to remember for these dummies!" Bo shouted as he reared his right fist back and in one perfectly fluid motion, lunged forward putting an insane amount of force behind him.

His bare fist made contact with the center of the metal door and kept going forward ripping the door from its hinges as he followed through with his punch. Compared to wearing the weighted boxing gloves he always wore, punching without any resistance truly showed the monstrous amount of strength and prowess Bo had within him.

"Let's rumble ya little shits!" Bo mocked as he entered the vault right behind the door he had utterly destroyed. Hooligans wearing all-black clothing all looked up to see the fearsomely intimidating Bo Stockston grinning menacingly before them. Bo was cracking his knuckles and scanned the men before him.

The men in the vault numbered close to thirty in total. They had all been sitting at a series of large tables playing cards and other games to pass the time. Besides the tables inside the vault, the rest was relatively empty. A dimly lit light bulb was all that illuminated the vault besides the daylight peaking in through the doorway that Bo had ripped right open. This light showed that also present on the tables were a series of den den mushi. It was obvious that the vault was a secured location to be kept secret. There was nothing flashy about it since its purpose was all business.

"Bo…Bo…Bo Stockston! But how?!" A terrified voice faintly exhaled from one of the men in the vault. Other voices expressed terror in the same manner and fear immediately filled the vault.

"Surprised to see me?" Bo shouted with a blood-thirsty fashion. His intense rage and overall overbearing demeanor filled the entire vault.

Without a moment's hesitation Bo then blitzed the group of men before him. Putting his right arm behind him he dealt a jaw-cracking cross to the first man that he reached. This vicious cross sent the man flying to the side, thus opening room to smash the next man's face in with a terrifyingly fast jab to the nose.

A barrage of similar punches were then dealt in a matter of seconds to the remaining men in the vault except for one who Bo decided to leave alone. He left this one man pinned in the back corner of the vault similar to how he would often pin boxers in the ring.

Bo's punches were so fast that none of the men in the vault even had time to draw a knife, gun or any weapon to defend themselves for that matter. Bo was simply leaps and bounds beyond them in strength and agility.

Then approaching the man he had decided pin in the corner behind a mass of his knocked out colleagues, Bo sternly spoke. "You're gonna tell me what I want to know. Are we clear son?"

The man whimpered like a child as he nodded his head in response to Bo. Sweat was pouring down his already sweat-soaked head like fountain as he shivered and wobbled about on his weak knees. He leaned back on the wall of the vault for support as Bo stood before him.

"So I heard your little coward-ass boss was planning this whole damn scheme to cripple me and win a bet... Am I right?" Bo asked, hatred growing with every word just thinking about the underhanded plot that almost fell upon him.

The cornered man gulped as he nodded.

"Tsch well then I guess that guy's story adds up." Bo spoke as he shook his head at the absurdity of how things fell into place.

"Well then, now that I know that… who is the shitty boss of yours? And where the hell can I find him?"

The cornered man hesitated upon hearing this request that he knew all too well would eventually be asked. He looked up at Bo and then down to the floor. It was clear he didn't want to spill the information.

Bo was not feeling this hesitation one bit however and with a sudden jab to the wall behind the man's head, a massive hole appeared where Bo's fist met the metal. The hole made was not more than two inches from the top of the cornered man's head.

"Last chance fool! Get to talking you punk-ass shit!" Bo shouted to the man, rearing his arm back to deliver the next punch directly into the man himself, when suddenly from out of the hole he made in the vault's wall something caught his attention. It was smoke pouring up into the sky from the city.

"What the shit?" He questioned upon seeing this site. "Oion is on fire?"

The cornered man turned his head to look out the hole made above him and upon seeing the smoke in the city he couldn't take it anymore.

"Our boss is the one responsible for those fires! Once he heard his plan was foiled he went berserk! None of us dared to stop him! He is a terribly fearsome man!" The man jumbled as he hurried to spill the information as to not be punched out by the boxer before him.

"Yo slow it down son." Bo responded to the frightened man.

"Our boss… he had been having a bad couple days recently due to a peculiar pirate he ran into. Apparently this pirate is a complete rookie but he somehow managed to completely embarrass our boss's image. The pirate's name was Oregano … and once our boss heard from our stationed man at the boxing arena that it was the very same pirate that helped you avoid drinking the water we had planned for you... well he went mad… It cost him a fortune to buy the chemicals from Skrullton Labs to put in your water but the bet he placed on the underdog of your fight was going to make him set for life."

The man took a deep breath as he continued. "He completely lost it when his plans all fell apart today at the hands of this rookie kid and he went out and set those fires and falsely reported to the marines that they were started by Oregano… He is doing whatever it takes to get this rookie in the spotlight so he will be hunted down by the marines if he can't get to him himself. Our boss won't be questioned at all about these claims either mind you...you see our boss, the very man you seek is none other Lieutenant Commander Difetto!"

** A/N: Hello everyone! I hope you enjoyed this chapter of Oregano! This chapter was a blast to write and I hope you liked reading it as much as I did writing it! The final conclusion to the Oion saga will be the next chapter – What will happen?! Haha I can't wait to reveal it to you! **

Also please do review like always – I love to see what you have to say!


	17. Oregano Chapter 3 Part 4

Disclaimer: We do not own One Piece in any way.

Uh-Oh Look Out Oregano! Oion Bay Packs a Punch! Part Four - Oion Finale!

By: peanutbutterlung (Whale)

At the Southburn Vaults

Bo stared wide-eyed back at the man he had cornered inside the vault. Could what the man had said about Difetto and Oregano really be true?

After giving everything a moment to sink in Bo began to let out a few satisfied grunts, each one that escaped his mouth left with more satisfaction than the last. He slowly shook his head at everything he had heard in amazement.

"Tsch, so Oregano is going to be blamed for all the shit going on out there? That fire looks like it is spread clean throughout the whole damn city! Getting attention from this would be an understatement…"

Bo then closed his eyes tightly. "Damn this might just be crazy enough to work!"

He exclaimed as he finally backed away from the cornered man letting the poor guy finally be at ease.

"Lucky you, being the last bastard I reached in this shitty vault. You get ya self-sparred from a broken jaw since you spilled so many facts."

The man's expression conveyed complete relief at Bo's words. He was a traitor and he knew it for letting out all the information. But with the sight of his crazed leader fresh in his mind from earlier, and a massive heavy weight boxing champion currently placed in front of him ready to smash his skull in without a moment's notice, the information seemed to slip out of his mouth on against his own freewill. It just couldn't be helped. Fear acted as an escort and directed the information he held straight to Bo's ears.

Bo was currently staring out the hole in the vault looking at the image of a burning city in the distance, and when it seemed he had gazed through the hole long enough, he proceeded to bash his way through the already weakened wall before him. He had his sights set back at Oion city.

Now Outside of the Boxing Arena

Oregano, Polen and Vanhoogen had finally made it outside of the boxing arena in downtown Oion City. Much to their dismay, when they looked over the situation around them they saw that the fires were beginning to reach where they were. The fire was not only reaching towards them however, it was outstretching in every direction!

"Yikes we sure got out of there right on time Vanhoogen!" Oregano bellowed to the old man.

"That we did lad, now to find a blasted way out of this mess." Vanhoogen replied as he began to make his way away from the boxing arena that would soon be engulfed based on the movements of the fire heading towards them.

Polen was currently shivering like nobody's business due to their current situation. He clung tightly like a vice-grip to Oregano's shoulder.

"Psst Poleeeen! I think I am going to lose circulation in my arm if you don't ease up a bit buddy!" Oregano whispered to his koala as he continued to follow Vanhoogen's lead the best he could.

He seemed to stay about ten passes behind the old man because of the wobbling from his broken leg. The pain medicine was still a good ways away from kicking in, and a sharp pain managed to shoot up his leg every time he placed it down on the ground. He continued on however, because the threat of being roasted by the fires around him overpowered every other thought in his mind.

Vanhoogen then called out loudly from ahead as he spotted hope in the ring of fire they had found themselves in. "This way Oregano! It seems there is an alleyway ahead that is open for our escape out of the main part of the city!"

"Ah terrific! Nice job spotting a way out!" Oregano replied with joy.

It was about that time though that a recording boomed through the city. It was coming from speakers that were set up along the city streets. Each speaker that wasn't destroyed or melted echoed through the burning city.

*Oion residents! Please evacuate the city immediately! Forget about any of your belongings and escape! Make sure your loved-ones are with you and reach safety immediately! Marines are being dispatched to aid you in a safe evacuation now!*

This message was repeating itself on a loop throughout the city speakers.

After listening to the message, Oregano saw Vanhoogen before him hastily waving his arm for him to hurry up before the opening the alleyway held became a thing of the past.

"Shoot come on leg! Move a little faster will ya?" Oregano laughed as he tried to swing his broken leg with more momentum to increase his movement. Polen began nodding in agreement at his master's statement towards his own leg. His face was pressed into Oregano's shoulder and his eyes were clinched tight. But he was still all about showing he agreed with Oregano and wished the broken leg would indeed move faster as well.

As Oregano continued to approach the anxious Vanhoogen he suddenly heard a shout from one of the tall buildings bordering the street he was currently walking. The shout sounded like it belonged to a terrified woman.

Oregano paused and looked up to the windows towering over him. It wasn't long before he saw the woman he heard waving vigorously from a third story window. Oregano was shocked at this site.

"Ayeee Vanhoogen there is a lady up there who didn't make it out of her building!" Oregano shouted.

Vanhoogen's eyes followed the direction Oregano's finger was frantically pointing in and finally met with the tragic scene in the building overhead. The woman was now looking down directly at Oregano and himself.

"Vanhooooooooogen we have to save her!" Oregano hollered towards the elderly man.

Vanhoogen looked behind him at the alleyway that was to be their way out of this mess. It was still untouched by the ravenous flames but as he scanned the scene more closely he saw that this would not be the case for long.

"Oregano you are crippled and I am an old man! We would only end up dying in that building if we went in after her! The marines should be here soon to help her! Our window of opportunity to escape is slowly closing before us as well I'm afraid."

Oregano's eyes became bold upon hearing this. He looked upon the blazing building containing the helpless woman, he then looked down the street past Vanhoogen to see the safe alleyway. Oregano then looked down at Polen and whispered.

"Go to Vanhoogen Polen! He will take you out of this mess."

Polen, whose face was still buried in Oregano's shoulder, softly raised his trembling head. His beady eyes peaked over his 'cool' shades as he stared back at his master's face. Uneasiness was evident in his face and became even more so when he let out a worried squeak.

"Shh none of that now Poleeeen you wiener! I'm gonna be out right after I do what I can here alright my man?" Oregano reassured his pet as he scratched the top of his head.

Polen nodded in return, there was still incredibly unnerving feelings within him, but he respected his master's wishes.

"Good boy Polen!" Oregano softly spoke as he patted Polen on the back. "Oh yikes and let me borrow these!" Oregano added as he swiped Polen's 'cool' shades off and slipped them onto his own face. Polen was about to start fighting Oregano for wearing his shades without any hesitation, but he quickly remembered the situation they were in and hopped off Oregano's shoulder peacefully and raced over and up into Vanhoogen's arms.

"Take care of my koala Vanhoogen! I'll be out soon!" Oregano called out.

"Kid! Are you mad? This is ridiculous!" Vanhoogen responded.

Oregano called back with a laugh as he replied. "Adventures worth wild usually are!"

Vanhoogen couldn't believe what he was hearing. He had to talk this young man out of doing what he was planning on doing, but when he turned to check back on the status of the alleyway he realized if he was going to escape now was the only time.

"I won't forgive you if my koala isn't waiting happily for me when I finish here!" Oregano shouted, and then with a laugh he continued. "Now get out of here you biscuit heads!"

Vanhoogen nodded upon hearing this. He didn't want to leave Oregano, but it was obvious Oregano was very determined. Vanhoogen decided at the very least he would fulfill a dead man's last wish by taking Polen away from harm so he headed towards the alleyway.

Oregano smiled upon seeing Vanhoogen and Polen heading for safety. Then directing his attention up towards the woman he shouted. "Now then lady! I'm gonna come and help you out of this mess!"

The woman shouted back towards him but he couldn't make it out. It was just a scream in his ears. Oregano's terrible hearing made having a conversation of this extent very difficult.

"I don't know what you said but I'm gonna guess it was something to the extent of 'Please save me my hero!' - So save you I will haha!" Oregano shouted back.

Oregano then took off his windbreaker, folded it over a few times upon itself and finally held it up to his face. He stuck the harm sleeves around the lower half of his face and then tied it in a knot behind his head like a bandanna.

Now with shades and a jacket tied around his face Oregano was ready to man the fires inside the building and save this lady! He hoped at least.

He figured he must be looking pretty slick at the moment but he quickly snapped out of it and began to hobble over to the building entrance with his crutch and broken leg.

Upon reaching the doors Oregano began to pooch his lips under the windbreaker in disapproval. "Ayee there might be fire on the other side of this door! I better be careful!"

Once he looked over the scene before him, he devised a plan and reached down to his shorts and drew up one of his pistols.

"Awesome I'll shoot this door off its hinges and knock it over with my crutch when I'm done! No burnt Oregano that way!" Oregano laughed as he then suddenly unleashed three bullets flying into the door without a moment's notice. It was purely instinctual based on the fact he didn't even aim. None the less though, the door had three bullet holes where its hinges would be respectively.

"Ah nice that worked nicely!" Oregano proudly spoke as he waddled up to the door with his crutch. This waddling put a harsh damper on his cool points from shooting the door in such a rad fashion, but it was the only way, so he couldn't help but do it.

When he finally reached the door he leaned back and pulled his crutch up and pointed it at the door in front of him. Then with a forceful lean he drove the end of his crutch into the weakened door. The door budged a little at this action, but it took Oregano a couple more times before the door finally fell down in front of him.

"Few alright then!" Oregano exclaimed as he peaked in over the fallen door to check for fire. It seemed like the scene was clear before him, and he was about to step on in until a voice shouted from behind him.

"Stop right there!" the voice boomed

Oregano quickly turned his head towards where the voice had come from and found himself looking at a group of eight marines.

"Hey looter! Thief? Robber? Whatever you are! We heard gun shots! What are you up to?!" One marine instantly questioned once he saw Oregano turn around with the windbreaker covering his face as well as the shades he was wearing. He looked incredibly suspicious.

"Ayee! No way not me!" Oregano responded to the marine throwing out accusations. "I'm trying to get in and save a woman on the third floor!"

The marine's faces became filled with shock at Oregano's words. "Let us take care of that! You are just a regular citizen! Besides you have a broken leg it seems!" The marine added.

And with that two of the eight marines ran into the building past Oregano. They were wearing flame-retardant outfits and nodded at Oregano as they ran by.

Oregano was standing beside the door he had just knocked over mouth agape when another one of the marines came over to him and helped walk him over away from the building.

"Shoot I wanted to save the day!" Oregano cried as he looked over the towering building the two marines were currently running through.

"Hey don't sweat it. You were a big help alerting us of the stranded woman's location. You definitely saved her day in that sense." One of the marines assured Oregano.

"Hah! Yeah I guess you're right!" Oregano responded with a cheerful laugh.

The marine smiled and nodded as he made his way over to Oregano. The marine had on a standard uniform for his outfit however he wore it very loosely. The buttons on the shirt were not all buttoned, and his marine cap was turned around backwards. As for his hair he had bleach white-blonde shoulder length hair that contrasted in color quite a bit with his dark bronze like tan. This marine also had large gauges in his earlobes that also made him stand out from your everyday marine.

This interesting marine then began to continue the conversation. "You know, we really need more people like you in this world! There seems to be so many people filled with evil nowadays! This heinous act for instance by that demon of a pirate Oregano just shows how twisted pirates can be! There will be no mercy when we find him! No matter what! What he did here today is unforgivable! These fires not only spanned the city, but they even burned Marine Base 119! A direct attack on the marines like that will not be overlooked! That Oregano is a devil!"

Oregano froze up instantly upon hearing what the marine had just said about him, but he was quickly relieved when he realized he was still wearing the shades and jacket over his face. His identity was safe, if the marine even knew what he looked like that is. But it was definitely better to be on the safe side and leave them on.

The marine then continued. "Not only are we experiencing hell over here though, apparently there is a huge scale prison break taking place over at Callahan Prison as well! The trash of West Blue seem to have similar schedules revolving around their evil deeds."

Oregano hesitantly laughed as he responded. "I'm so sorry to hear all of that man! Gosh what an unlucky day! Ohhh but umm, not that your news isn't interesting or anything… But can you help me get out of this dangerous area in the meantime? I need to go check on my friend."

The marine's eyes widened as he spoke. "Oh yes of course we need to get you out of here! My apologies I just got so worked up talking about that fiend Oregano!"

"No worries man! Haha from what you say he sounds pretty scary for sure!" Oregano replied. He couldn't help but feel awkward about this whole situation but there was nothing else he could do.

"Good let's get you out of here!" The marine nodded. "Oh but wait, I'm sure the woman in the building would like to know her hero's name! What's your name? I should tell the others so they can tell her when they get her out."

Oregano paused for a moment as he fought back responding with 'Oregano' like he normally would, and then, once collecting himself he muttered. "Oh my name? My name, my name is um … my name is Dave… Dave Davids."

Oregano did a mental face palm upon saying this name that also worked as a mental block to help him from not spewing with laughter.

The marine's face twisted upon hearing this odd name. "Dave Davids huh?" He questioned.

Oregano responded with a nod. "That's right!" he replied. Amazed at just how silly this conversation was he tried not to chuckle or blow his cover. He could feel air being pushed through his nose a little bit, and knew if he thought about the situation any more he would snort from laughter.

The marine raised an eyebrow one last time in confusion, but none the less turned to his comrades waiting at the burning building. "Hey tell that lady her hero's name is Dave… Davids when you finally get her out!"

"Will do!" The other marines shouted back in unison. Quiet mutters between themselves could faintly be heard after this. Most likely talking about the ridiculous name they had just heard.

The marine then turned back towards Oregano and gave a nod to show his readiness. "Let's get you out of here Dave!"

"Haha right on man! Oh what's your name by the way?" Oregano replied as he and the marine began to make their way away from the burning building and walked through the fire-less area that was lucky enough to have been around them this entire time, sparing them from the harsh flames for a while.

"Oh my name is Avey! Sorry for not introducing myself earlier." The marine replied to Oregano as he looked over the fire that had encircled the area in the distance.

The buildings that were making up the alleyway Vanhoogen and Polen escaped through earlier were now engulfed in flame so that exit was useless now.

"Oh coolio gotcha! Well Avey, what is the plan? Oregano asked as he scanned the area around them. Nothing but flames roaring strong and burning brightly from surrounding buildings could be seen. "I can't see a way out of this mess anywhere!"

Avey sighed as he spoke. "I really don't see a way out either Dave. I was hoping…" Avey had started talking but his words suddenly came to a halt.

Hissing streams of dust blurred over top many buildings around the area Oregano and himself were near. This dust was wide spread, and due to the speed of the force carrying the dust, and the amount being carried as well, it managed to put out much of the fire present on the various buildings hit.

"Ohhh whoa sick! What in the world was that?!" Oregano exclaimed with awe evident in his voice.

Avey began to grin as he replied. "Captain Bleucubber has finally reached this part of this city and unknowingly allowed us a way out!"

"Captain Bleucubber?" Oregano questioned as he and Avey now resumed walking towards the buildings before them which led out of the city.

Avey's eyes were filled with relief as he spoke. "Captain Bleucubber is the Marine Captain in charge of Base 119. You must not be from around here. He is an incredibly powerful man. These waves of dust being sent flying are caused by him swinging his mighty spear. We are fortunate he is nearby!"

Oregano laughed as he replied. "We would have found a way I'm sure Avey! Oh but wow this Bleucubber sounds like a super fellow!"

The two were now moving through the very same alleyway Vanhoogen and Polen had left through earlier. Their pace was slow because of Oregano's broken leg but they were not being rushed by vicious flames so this calmer pace was acceptable and was also quite a relief on Oregano's leg. The pain medicine was beginning to kick in a little but not enough to really make a difference.

The two had now finally reached the end of the alleyway and before them now was a cobblestone road that ran perpendicular to the alleyway they were just coming out of. Beyond this cobblestone road lay a dirt road that winded its way down a series of slopping sand dunes that morphed from a prairie like area to the sandy beach in the distance.

Avey then nodded to Oregano as he continued to talk. "Whew Captain Bleucubber sure saved us there- He is truly going all out today, especially after this act was done by that dreadful Oregano. It turns out he was warned about the threat Oregano posed by the security chief on Plisboro Cove and didn't take him all too seriously at the time. He gave Lieutenant Commander Difetto a very lax order of finding Oregano and when the pirate managed to out maneuver Difetto at Yortori, Difetto was really the only one that cared. Bleucubber never really saw Oregano as a problem because the security chief at Plisboro tends to overreact and is a little on the sensitive side… Captain Bleucubber is incredibly regretful at this decision however and is going with all his might to make up for his mistake and save the city."

Oregano stared wide-eyed back at Avey, although his eyes were covered by the 'cool' shades and couldn't be seen. He was shocked that Security Chief Mutton would go so far as to report him like he did. He was truly amazed at everything he had heard Avey tell him.

"Apparently the mayor back at Yortori Rise's Sukini City has been calling as well to complain about Oregano, but the officers stationed had to put her reports temporally on hold because she was calling right as the fires started popping up. That Oregano is causing trouble wherever he goes that's for sure though!" Avey added, piling out more and more faults that Oregano had been accused of.

"Gosh that is too crazy Avey! I really am so sorry for all this chaos! That Oregano sounds like a real piece of crud!" Oregano finally responded after the shock faded.

"You don't need to apologize one bit Dave, brave and respectable citizens like you are who make this world a nicer place to live in." Avey responded as he then looked back down the alleyway that led back into the city.

"But hey, here you are to safety Dave, I gotta go back into town and help out! Oh and one more thing, we were told Oregano would be identified as having a pet koala with him. If that bastard is still on this island and you catch a glimpse of him please report it immediately." Avey spoke with a determined tone.

Before Oregano could reply to Avey however, a heavy thud hit his shoulder from behind and a lump seemed to latch itself tightly around his upper arm.

It was Polen! The koala was incredibly jittery with excitement upon seeing his master make it out of the flames and was squeezing him as tightly as he could. Once he had gotten over squeezing Oregano's arm he quickly scurried up fully onto his master's shoulder and yanked off the 'cool' shades and put them back where they belonged.

"Poleeeen!" Oregano shouted in joy as he hugged his koala back after realizing just what it was that had glued itself to his body.

It was about that time however that Avey's last words echoed in the back of his mind.

Oregano looked up at Avey who was now incredibly red in the face. A feat that Oregano was surprised to see due to how much of a dark bronze tan Avey had.

"Shoot Avey I can explain man!" Oregano hesitantly muttered.

"Aghhhhh you were the demon all along?! I am going to make you pay for what you have done to Oion you piece of…!"

Avey was suddenly interrupted as a booming voice came crashing onto the scene.

"Shut yo damn mouth!" The voice called out as Avey was sent flying into the distance due to a massive fist making contact with the back of his head.

When Oregano and Polen's eyes regained their focus the image before them was Bo! He had decked Avey with his mighty fist and knocked him out cold.

Oregano and Polen's faces both lit up upon seeing the boxing champion. Polen leaped over onto Bo's shoulder as Oregano began to speak.

"Bo! It's good to see you again man!" Oregano then looked to where Avey used to be standing and hesitantly laughed as he continued. "But yikes did you really have to punch that guy?"

Bo patted Polen on the head, as he looked down at Oregano sternly. "Hell yeah I had to punch that fool, the marines are out to get you!"

"Ayee yeah that's true." Oregano responded with a laugh.

It was about that time however that Vanhoogen's voice chimed in on the scene. "Bo! Oregano! Oh thank heavens you are both alright!"

Bo began to scowl at Vanhoogen as he replied. "Course I'm alright who do you think I am old man?"

Oregano then laughed as he agreed. "Yeah who do you think he is? Oh but thanks yeah I'm glad I made it out alright too!"

Vanhoogen sighed as he looked over the two before him. He then turned his attention up at Bo as he spoke. "I guess you're right… Anyways what did you find at the vault Bo?"

Bo shook his head recalling the information he found out while at the vault. He spat down to the side before answering and then began to repeat the words he had heard from the man he had interrogated.

After Bo was done relaying what he had found out at the vault to Oregano and Vanhoogen, the amazement at the words he spoke was evident.

A shocked silence fell upon the scene for a few moments until Oregano's laughter began to leak out into the dry air. "Goodness! I really made that Difetto guy mad didn't I?"

Vanhoogen quickly turned his attention to the laughing Oregano and gave him a questioning look. "Oregano this is serious! What do you really plan on doing now?"

All eyes were on Oregano now with the exception of Polen who was currently taking a nap on Bo's shoulder due to the very stressful day he had had, he was ready to relax and he knew he was safe since he was with Bo.

Vanhoogen's eyes were filled with concern while Bo' were filled with what looked to be anticipation as they awaited Oregano's response.

Oregano stood before them for a while still laughing at just how crazy the whole situation was until he finally blurted. "I'm not going to do anything!"

Vanhoogen's eyes almost shot out of his head in surprise. "What?! You must be kidding! Oregano think about this decision and how it will impact your life!"

"Haha all I want is to do is have the adventure of a life time out on this crazy sea! If these marines are after me it will only make the adventure that much more exciting!"

Vanhoogen's wrinkles began to multiply even more than usual as his face twisted and contorted in ways previously thought unimaginable by man.

Bo on the other hand let out a pleased sound through his teeth upon hearing Oregano's words.

"Tsch well this shit might be easier than I thought. Yo Oregano, so how bout you let me sail with you?" Bo blatantly asked, crossing his arms as he waited for a response.

"Oh awesome! I really needed a new crew mate! Yeah that sounds like a plan welcome to the crew Bo!" Oregano replied with a thumbs up.

"That easy?!" Vanhoogen shouted in disbelief as he witnessed the simple back and forth between Oregano and Bo. "And wait besides that Bo what are you thinking? What is the meaning of this? What about your career?!"

"Shit what career old man? There hasn't been a boxer that can give me a fight in years! And I'm damn tired of it! If I go out to sea there is bound to be some strong fighters out there. Plus with the attention we all know Oregano is gonna be getting from all the shit that happened here today, it is a guarantee some heavy hitters will be coming his way." Bo stated openly.

"He is also a a surefire magnet for meeting that piece of shit Difetto. We ain't gonna find him today cause he is a damn lousy coward. But he is bound to try and get back at him some point down the road. So wherever Oregano goes, that will pull that fool with him. I'm not about to try and settle this shit with the marines neither, I'm settling my own shit!" Bo added sharply with hatred in his voice. Just thinking about getting the chance to extract his revenge on that low life was burning him up inside.

"Hah! It's settled then! Gosh Polen is going to be super excited about this when he wakes up!" Oregano smiled as he spoke. "Well I think we better head on out to sea now! This island is mad hectic! Plus I completed my goal of getting a crew member!"

Vanhoogen was flabbergasted at what he had just witnessed. Was he really losing his star boxer?

"Bo… If this is…" Vanhoogen started to speak but was cut off when a roaring gust of dust swept by a nearby building on the outskirts of town.

"Aye! Bleucubber is still at it around here huh?! I would love to see him do that wicked attack in person!" Oregano snickered.

"Bleucubber?! You will be a dead man if he sees you Oregano! We need to get out of here stat! Where did you dock your ship lad?" Vanhoogen quickly questioned.

"Ohmmm let me think!" Oregano whined as he tried to think back through the day. "It was a little coastal town that led into the upper part of Oion city."

"That must be at Crestless Bay!" Vanhoogen responded. "Let's move quickly!"

Now Approaching the Crestless Bay Area

"There she is! My ship - The Cherry Maria!" Oregano hollered once they had finally made it within sight of the dock where he had left his ship. "About time too! Even with this medicine I feel like my leg could fall off at any moment!"

Oregano, Vanhoogen and Bo who still had Polen sleeping on his shoulder continued down the path and passed by the seaside cottages along the way ending up to within a few steps of the dock the Cherry Maria was docked at.

"Shoot I had left that guy here to watch my ship and he isn't here anymore! Well at least it is safe." Oregano happily added as he scanned over his ship.

"So this is ya ship huh? Kinda small." Bo stated as he looked over the Cherry Maria.

"Hey don't you pick on her Bo! She is a perfect size to start this adventure out on!" Oregano combated with a laugh. He had to stick up for his ship that he adored so.

It was about that time however that a shout thundered from a nearby house overlooking the area near the Cherry Maria.

"Oye Oregano! You're back!" The voice announced.

A door on one of the on- looking houses busted open and out ran a familiar man. It was Fletcher! His pompadour bounced as he trotted over to greet the group.

"I've been keeping watch of your ship from my window! But more importantly, we haven't heard anything about what has been going on in the city yet! What is with those fires? Tell me quickly! As the sworn guardian of the coast I need to be filled in on the details!"

Fletcher was rambling a mile a minute until his eyes wandered up to the massive boxer standing behind Oregano.

"Bo…Bo… Bo! Bo Stockston! What are you doing here?! Is this a dream?!" Fletcher stammered upon seeing the boxing champion before him.

Bo shook his head unenthusiastically "Don't mind me man. I'm just taking care of some business."

"Bo is joining my crew!" Oregano happily added.

"Shit." Bo muttered realizing that Oregano couldn't keep things on the down low.

"Joining your crew?! No way! Just how strong are you Oregano? To be able recruit a powerhouse like Bo Stockston I mean wow!"

Oregano slyly grinned as he let out his best tough guy voice. "My strength… It simply can't be measured Fletcher!"

"Ahh no way! I never would have expected it by looking at you!" Fletcher shouted in astonishment.

"Haha yeah I hear that a lot! Oh and about your question about what is going on in town …" Oregano responded but was quickly cut off by Vanhoogen who let out a grunt. Vanhoogen was not about to let Oregano spill the beans about him being the one the marines thought started the fires. Any confrontations that could be avoided should be. Especially when he was involved with a wanted criminal.

Then after stepping into the conversation taking place, Vanhoogen caught Fletcher's eyes now as well.

"Whoa legendary boxing coach Vanhoogen! You can't be joining Oregano as well can you?"

"Of course not! I'm only here to see them off." Vanhoogen sighed. "But about your question, we don't know anything about the fires. We all managed to get out and come here as quickly as we could." Vanhoogen desperately wanted to tell Fletcher the truth about Difetto, but after Oregano's response earlier about not caring and after Bo's comment about settling matters on his own he decided to keep quiet.

Fletcher was surprised when he heard that they knew nothing about the fires, but he wasn't going to question two legends of Oion before him.

"Well shoot hopefully we get some news about it soon!" Fletcher hesitantly whispered. "I hope nobody is hurt too bad."

Oregano and Vanhoogen nodded in agreement at Fletcher's comment. Bo on the other hand stared intently into the distance. Thoughts of how his life would soon be changing were keeping his mind busy.

"Well Fletcher we better be off man! Thanks for keeping any possible weirdos away from my ship and keeping it safe while I have been out!" Oregano then raised both hands into the air in shock at once, thus throwing his already wobbly body even more off kilter. He stumbled about and finally managed to settle himself after much effort. What had alarmed him was that he hadn't gotten Fletcher a present for watching his ship.

"Oye Fletcher do you have a pen and pad that you could get real quick?" Oregano asked rapidly once he thought of a solution to fix his 'present-less' situation.

"Um yes I do. Why?" Fletcher responded confused.

"Gooo get it! Hurry!" Oregano laughed.

Fletcher was still puzzled but none the less went running off to fetch the items Oregano asked for. It wasn't long before he was coming back out of the house and hurried back to the group.

"Excellent! Let me see them!" Oregano responded with a smile.

A Few Moments Later 

"Thank you so much!" Fletcher shouted as he hurried back into his home with the paper and pad back in his hands.

"Haha what a guy!" Oregano laughed as he watched Fletcher run away and waved goodbye.

"I don't like signing autographs. I only did that shit this time to make up for you shooting that water bottle earlier aight? We are on even ground now and don't owe each other nuthin'." Bo muttered to Oregano with a serious tone.

"Oh word! No doubt! Sounds like a plan Bo! Thanks for doing it this one time though! I really had to get him a present for keeping watch of my ship."

Bo grunted and nodded his head slightly towards Oregano in response.

"Well then are you two off now?" Vanhoogen questioned. His face still filled with unsure emotions regarding everything going on.

"Yep it's about that time!" Oregano replied with a smile! He then turned to the Cherry Maria and hobbled over to the rope ladder he had thrown down when docking earlier.

Upon reaching the ladder he threw his crutch up and over the side of the ship and made his way up the planks. Letting his good leg be the only thing that carried him upwards he made it up quite easily.

Then scooping down to pick up the crutch that he threw up over the deck he got his balance and looked overboard towards Bo. "Come on up Bo!"

Bo was facing Vanhoogen and proceeded to outstretch his fist forward towards him. Vanhoogen mirrored this movement and met Bo's fist with his own. It was the traditional boxing handshake.

"It's been real old man. Thanks for all the good shit you taught me." Bo stated to his coach.

"It was a pleasure Bo. I had taught you everything I could. You had far surpassed anything I could teach you ages ago. You are truly gifted… Take care of yourself out there." Vanhoogen responded and then looked up to the Cherry Maria to see Oregano's goofy smile staring back at him. "You will need to stay on your guard at all times being with that young man. He has an air of bad luck that seems to follow him."

"Tsch nothing I can't handle." Bo responded as he turned from Vanhoogen towards the Cherry Maria. Then stepping up to the ship he completely disregarded the ladder thrown over and leaped from the dock into the ship in one single bound. Keeping one hand on Polen's sleeping body as he flew through the air to make sure the koala didn't fall off midair.

"Oh wow! What a leap!" Oregano praised as he clapped for Bo on his impressive entrance onto the ship. "Haha and I can't believe Polen is still asleep! He is so lazy!"

"Come on man no need for that, the jump was nuthin'." Bo responded. "And I'll just let the cat keep sleeping. It don't bother me."

"Haha Polen is a koala! But awesome he will be thrilled when he wakes up!" Oregano commented as he watched Vanhoogen untie the rope that was connecting them to the dock.

"Thanks Vanhoogen! See ya later!" Oregano called out to the elderly man and waved goodbye.

Vanhoogen waved back as the ship began to drift off away from dock. "Take care!"

Now Out at Sea on The Cherry Maria

Oregano turned from the side of the ship when he was finished waving to Vanhoogen and hobbled over to the steering wheel. Once there he began to turn the ship away from the docks and out into the open ocean.

It was about that time however that he suddenly saw the food bowl he had left beside the knocked out Tompkins! The bowl was empty on the deck and the seagull was gone. "Hah glad we could help ya Tompkins!" Oregano laughed as he then looked around the ship for where Bo and Polen had gone off to.

"He must have gone downstairs to check out the living quarters!" Oregano stated to himself.

It wasn't long until he realized his prediction was accurate. The door leading from the living quarters to the top deck suddenly burst open and an agitated Bo called out. "Does this damn thing belong to you too?"

Oregano looked up and from behind the wheel and from out of the doorway flew Tompkins! The seagull was heading right for Oregano and perched right on top of his head.

"Tompkins! Are you staying with us!?" Oregano questioned with an incredibly excited voice.

Tompkins nodded his head vigorously and began to squawk about in joy. His wings were outstretched and he swayed from side to side.

"Hoooooray!" Oregano cheered loudly in response to Tompkins's decision.

"Shit Oregano is this a pirate crew or a zoo ya got going here?" Bo muttered.

Oregano laughed upon hearing this comment and it was about that time that all the commotion had finally reached Polen in his deep slumber.

The koala eye's glowed a frightening red color that even managed to shine through the blackness of the 'cool' shades!

Polen had locked on target and sprung off of Bo's shoulder not even realizing whose shoulder he had been on. He made two dreadfully fast pounces on the ground as he made his way to Oregano and blitzed him with devastating tackle to his 'bad' leg. Polen was a dirty player for sure!

Oregano fell over with this attack and let out a cry. "Ayeee Poleeeen! You're killing me!" He shouted. "Tompkins! Bo! Help me!"

But it was too late a brawl had already developed and before Oregano knew it Tompkins was joining in with the brawl as well.

"You tricksters are gonna pay for this!" Oregano laughed as he wrestled the animals attacking him.

After a few moments of the brawl going on the three fighters all respectively became warn out. Bo had left the scene a long time ago and was back down in the living quarters making himself at home.

"Whew Polen! Tompkins! That was quite the match!" Oregano laughed as he crawled over to his crutch that had been sent sliding across the deck in the brawl. Upon reaching it he stood up and upon standing up, his head was instantly perched on by Tompkins. "Haha you claiming that spot huh Tompkins?" Oregano chuckled.

Tompkins nodded his head and squawked in return. "Awesome that works fine! Polen has my shoulder claimed for his spot… Oh and speaking of shoulders did you even notice whose shoulder you were on earlier?" Oregano asked slyly knowing he would soon get a terrific reaction from his fuzzy friend.

Polen lowered his 'cool' shades showing both his eyes to Oregano and stared wide eyed at him.

"Shoot why don't you go down and see for yourself!" Oregano laughed as he pointed to the door leading to the living quarters.

Polen took off like a bullet and made many loud thuds upon hitting each step.

A sudden crash was heard followed by Bo who shouted. "Calm it down cat!"

Oregano and Tompkins began to laugh wildly at this display.

"Gosh what a day!" Oregano stated as he finally caught his breath from laughing. He then turned around to look behind him at Oion Island in the distance. Smoke was still billowing into the sky but from this distance it looked as if all the fires were for the most part taken care of.

"I hope Bleucubber and the rest of the marines were able to control that situation and take care of everybody!" Oregano muttered. Then taking a moment of silence, he looked down from the island in the distance and looked down at his feet. As he bent his head over Tompkins leaned over with complete horizontal posture with him.

Then with one big nod and a fist in the air Oregano shouted. "But let's focus on the good though! Hooray for the two new members of the Oregano Pirates! Tompkins and Bo!"

Tompkins squawked in response and Oregano happily shuffled over to the wheel. He made sure the direction was set and then made his way down into the living quarters. The medicine was finally kicking in and was making him drowsy and he was ready for some sleep!

The Next Morning on The Cherry Maria

Oregano slowly peaked one of his eyes open upon waking up. What this eye saw was nothing but white fluffy feathers however. The more Oregano began to wake up the more he realized there was also something weighing down upon his face. Then opening both eyes and finally becoming aware of what was going on he shouted. "Tompkins! What are ya doing hatching my face for?!"

Tompkins was still snoozing himself and was incredibly startled by the sudden shouting beneath him. He sprang up into the air and began to flap about the room.

"Shucks Tompkins you bird! You are such a goof!" Oregano laughed as he watched the gull flutter around.

Then sitting up from where he had been sleeping which apparently was the sofa in the living room Tompkins immediately bolted towards Oregano's head and perched on his 'spot'.

"Haha I don't think anyone is going to be stealing this spot from you Tompkins! You don't have to claim it so fast!" Oregano laughed as he then looked around the room.

Everything was quiet and seemed to be in order.

"Hmm I can't even remember how I ended up sleeping on the couch last night. I was so tired!" Oregano stated as he grabbed the crutch that was propped on the coffee table beside him. Using it to stand up he rose up and stood on his 'good' leg. The more he woke up now the more he realized the pain coming from his broken leg however.

Looking down at himself he was only wearing his tee shirt and shorts he had yesterday. He guessed he took his windbreaker off in the sleeping quarters to hang it up, and inside the windbreaker pocket were the pain pills. So began to head into the sleeping quarters, wobbling as he went to see what was up.

Tompkins had now sat down on the top of Oregano's head completely and was simply enjoying the ride. It was a little bumpy due to Oregano's shuffling, but he didn't mind too much.

When Oregano finally made it through the doorway into the sleeping quarters he saw Polen sprawled out completely on one of the beds, snoring like nobody's business, along with an empty bed that made him figure Bo must have already woken up and was now out on the top deck.

"Well this room was full last night it seems... I still don't know why I slept on the couch though!" Oregano laughed.

"There is still the second bedroom, and the guest bedroom that make up the sleeping quarters that I could have slept in!" Oregano shook his head as he continued talking to Tompkins. "I guess that medicine just made me a little loopy! Thankfully I ended up on the couch I guess! Better than nothing huh?" Oregano chuckled.

Tompkins nodded in response with a cheerful squawk.

"Now then about those pain pills!" Oregano whispered. Pain was taking the breath out of him so he could only talk softly as he wobbled towards the closet he hoped his windbreaker was hanging in.

When he reached the closet doors he yanked them open. Both he and Tompkins both scanned the interior for anything orange but there was nothing of that color in sight! Both of their eyes sank as they hunched over at the lack of windbreaker present.

"Well shoot!" Oregano disappointingly whispered. He really needed some relief. Out of the corner of his eye however he spotted something draped over the shower curtain in the bathroom. He had now become in view of the bathroom entrance, and when he turned his head he saw it was his orange windbreaker of all things.

"What in the world is it doing in there?" Oregano laughed as he hobbled into the bathroom. Sure enough the windbreaker was hanging over the shower curtain and when Oregano pulled it down he felt the weight of the pill bottle inside the pocket.

"Well awesome this works out." Oregano commented as he popped out some pain pills and turned to the sink he was now next to. He then filled up a cup sitting on the sink up with water and downed the pills in a flash.

'Phew water sure does help Tompkins - Remember that if you ever need to take some pills!" Oregano spoke in a relieved tone. Happy he would feel some relief in a while.

Tompkins let out a questioning chirp in response as he tilted his head.

Oregano could see him perfectly because the two were now in front of a mirror. Tompkins's eyes were meeting Oregano's in the mirror before them.

"I'm just pulling your leg Tompkins!" Oregano laughed.

Tompkins let out a satisfied squawk and began to shake about in order to get in a better position on top Oregano's head.

"Aye well now that I am in the bathroom I can take a shower and get ready for the day!" Oregano said with a smile. "I sure am glad this cast is water proof!" He added with a laugh.

Then looking at the bird still sitting on his head Oregano laughed "Tompkins you gotta get off for a little while alright?"

Tompkins's eyes grew large when he heard this statement and grew even larger when he felt Oregano hands scoop him up and off the top of his head.

Moments Later

"It's just for a little while Tompkins!" Oregano shouted with a struggling voice. The scene going down at the moment was Oregano on one side of the bathroom door trying to push the door closed, and on the other a determined Tompkins worried about his 'spot' being left unguarded was fighting to keep the door propped open. Tompkins was half way in through the door so Oregano couldn't close it all the way or he would crush his feathery friend.

This outbreak was causing quite a commotion and it wasn't long until a certain koala was rudely awakened!

Oregano saw Polen jump off of bed with evil intent in his eyes through the crack in the door that was left due to Tompkins's body jamming it open. The koala was heading their way and looked like he was ready to kill!

"Sorry Tompkins good luck out there bud!" Oregano cried as he watched his seagull get pulled backwards in an instant by the vicious koala that had been awakened from his slumber. It was in this exact moment that Oregano took advantage of the situation and shut and locked the bathroom door on the spot.

A brawl could be heard coming from outside the door. From the sounds of it, Oregano depicted the most bloodthirsty and brutal fight he could think of in his head to match the sounds he was hearing.

"It had to be done! Forgive me Tompkins!" Oregano wept.

"But hey at least I get to take my shower in peace now!" Oregano quickly stated with a smile.

Now After Oregano's Shower

Oregano was now feeling clean and refreshed! He managed to do all his other morning preparations while in the bathroom and finally came out wearily of what he might find on the other side of the door.

Much to his surprise he saw the two animals that sounded like they were murdering each other just moments ago, now sitting side by side on the foot of the bed, each drinking a bottle of cola! They were both covered with bandages and Oregano could only imagine how this all came to be while he was gone.

"Drinking colas?! In the morning?! You goobers!" Oregano laughed at the sight before him. Tompkins downed his drink fast through a straw that had been placed in his bottle and then flew over to Oregano and perched on his 'spot'.

"Haha it's all your now man!" Oregano snickered at the silly seagull as he then proceeded to get fully dressed.

Today he decided to go with his pale yellow tee shirt which had a neon green lion face on it. Pulling it over both Tompkins and his own head to get it on was difficult, but he managed in the end. As for shorts he put on a pair of maroon cargo shorts that he very carefully slipped on the side with the broken leg. He then slipped into his orange windbreaker, pulled up a knee-high black sock on his 'good' leg, and dug his free foot into a forest green and black sneaker.

He was now ready to go!

"Come on guys let's go tell Bo good morning!" Oregano shouted as Polen happily pounced onto Oregano's shoulder as he staggered by the bed he was still sitting on drinking his cola.

"It's funny how you two use the crippled guy as your means to get around!" Oregano sighed as he shook his head and laughed.

It was a tricky trip up the stairs when Oregano had finally made it up to them after making it past the living quarters. The added weights of both Polen and Tompkins sure didn't help, but he eventually made it to the top.

He opened the door and stepped out onto the deck. Bo was in the middle of the deck shadow boxing at insanely quick speeds. It was truly a sight to see. His fists were nothing but a blur!

"Aye good morning Bo!" Oregano called out and waved with a smile to the boxer before him.

Tompkins mimicked Oregano and waved one of his wings up towards the boxer as well.

Polen on the other hand went running to see him.

Bo turned around to the others and nodded his head. "So ya finally awake huh?" Bo muttered as he stared at Oregano.

"Yeah man! This pain medicine really knocks me out. I didn't even realize how late it was." Oregano responded.

Polen was now happily trotting around the deck at Bo's massive feet, and Oregano slowly crept out of the doorway and looked around at the ships surroundings.

It was a beautiful sunny day. And nothing but ocean in every direction could be seen. Looking up to sky there wasn't a cloud in the sky.

Then in the distance a speck caught Oregano's eye. As the speck grew closer he realized it was a News Coo flying by.

"Haha Tompkins is that a cousin of yours?" Oregano joked as the News Coo flew directly over and dropped a paper on the deck before him.

Bo's eyes were now fixated on the paper that Oregano was now bending over to read.

"There's bound to be a report on the shit they pinned on you in there." Bo stated as he walked over to where Oregano was.

"Yikes there sure is!" Oregano exclaimed as he read the article titled 'Oregano brings Hell to Oion!'

"Well don't keep me waiting all damn day what's it say? They better have put a nice bounty on your head! I need some real fighters to come after you so I can actually get some competition!"

Oregano's eyes scanned the article in his hands and suddenly grew large at one suppressing addition he was not expecting at all at the end.

"Shit Oregano spill it!" Bo shouted. Anger was filling his voice.

"Um ok here it is…" Oregano started. "A true devil of a pirate 'Triple Six' Oregano…" Oregano then stopped reading as he looked up at Bo. "Shoot they really gave me a mean nickname huh?" He asked with a pitiful voice

"Who cares! Keep reading!" Bo shouted

Oregano hung his head and let out a soft whine "…I care!"

Then looking back to the article he continued.

"Oregano made a name for himself yesterday by setting aflame the entirety of Oion City! An attack was also made directly on Marine Base 119. Numerous other accounts of piracy have been reported, for instance at Yortori Rise where he threatened a marine officer and held him at gunpoint, and yet another at Plisboro Cove where he terrorized civilians and destroyed a peaceful celebration striking fear into the hearts of all the children present..."

Bo nodded upon hearing all of this. "Sounds good, sounds good! So what's ya bounty? They had to give you a nice one for all that shit right?" Bo questioned.

Oregano looked down at the article and then hesitantly back up at Bo. "That's not all they said man…"

Bo's eye grew large upon hearing this. "Great what else did they add? The bigger bounty the better!"

"Ayeee I don't know if you are going to like to hear this!" Oregano hesitantly replied with a laugh.

"Let it out!" Bo shouted. As far as he was concerned anything would be fine with him.

"Well alright here it is." Oregano answered as he began to read the last line of the article. "But the most shocking act 'Triple Six' Oregano has done so far is! … The kidnapping of West Blues very own, Heavy Weight Boxing Champion Bo Stockston! Giving him a bounty altogether of 36,000,000 belli!"

"KIDNAPPED?!" Bo shouted in disbelief.

** A/N: Hey everyone! Whew Oion is done! It was such a blast to write! I hope you all enjoyed the wackiness, twists and revelations that it held! I can't wait to get started on the next adventure I have planned for Oregano and his 'crew' (Haha I'm happy I can say that now)

-I would like to say a big thanks to all who read and review our chapters as well! We really appreciate your words and knowing what you think of our stories means a lot!

-Please do continue reading and reviewing!**


	18. Character Sheet: Oregano Green

Disclaimer: We do not own One Piece in any way.

Character Sheet/Trivia/Background Information/and About the Author  
><span>

By: peanutbutterlung (Whale)

** Hey everyone! I have created this information page mostly to help you all keep up with the characters in Oregano's story thus far – I will be naming previously unnamed characters as well as revealing some secrets and trivia as well! I hope you enjoy this information sheet, and that it becomes a useful tool for you as well! **

Character Log –

The Oregano Pirates

**Oregano: **The unlucky captain of a dysfunctional pirate crew/zoo. Oregano sets off into the world of pirates with the simple goal to explore the vast wonders awaiting him and have the adventure of a life time.

-Epithet: 'Triple Six'

-Alias: Dave Davids

-Age: 20

-Sex: Male

-Species: Human

-Height: 6'1''

-Weight: 143lbs

-Hair Color: Dark Brown

-Hair Cut: Short cut

-Facial Hair: short trimmed

-Skin Color: Tan with an orange tint

- Eye Color: Black

-Other Features: Oregano has dark circles around his eyes, and has two cowlicks of hair that spike off of his head

- Personality: Easy-Going/ Goofy

-Alignment: Chaotic Good

-Occupation: Pirate Captain/Adventurer

-Strengths: Incredibly proficient with firearms, decent cook, good with animals

-Weaknesses: Terrible luck, poor hearing, colorblind, obliviousness

-Weapons: Hunter's Rifle and two pistols

-Attire: Oregano has T-shirts of a wide and wild variety, cargo shorts, an orange windbreaker, knee high socks and a nice sneaker collection

-Representative Color: Neon Green

-Dream: To explore as much of the world as he can and to find the Candy Cloud.

-Bounty: 36,000,000 Belli

* * *

><p><strong>Polen: <strong>The rambunctious pet koala of Oregano. Polen is incredibly confident, cool and knows he is in charge. Polen is Oregano's best friend through thick and thin, even if things get a little hectic sometimes.

-Age: 4

-Sex: Male

-Species: Marble Koala

- Height: 2'5''

-Weight: 21lbs

-Fur Color: Marbled beige and gray colorations

-Eye Color: Dark Brown

-Other Features: Polen is incredibly fluffy, especially on his ears

-Personality: Spunky/ Assertive

-Alignment: True Neutral

-Occupation: Look-Out

-Strengths: Determination, Cuteness, Sneakiness, Confidence

-Weakness: Stubborn, Lazy

-Representative Color: Metallic Gray

-Dream: Endure this journey with Oregano and make it back home safely in the end.

* * *

><p><strong>Tompkins: <strong>Tompkins is Oregano's silly pet seagull. The two met fatefully out at sea when Tompkins crash landed into the side of Oregano's ship. Oregano took care of the wounded bird and have become fast friends ever since.

-Age: 2

-Sex: Male

-Species: Banded Seagull

-Height: 2'1''

-Weight: 3lbs

-Feather Color: White

-Beak Color: Dark Yellow

-Leg Color: Black

-Eye Color: Black

-Other Features: Tompkins has three light blue stripes of feathers going around his neck.

-Personality: Territorial/ Instinctive

-Alignment: Neutral Good

-Occupation: Scout

-Strengths: Flight, Speedy, Protective

-Weaknesses: Tiny, Obsessive, Very frail

-Representative Color: Sky Blue

-Dream: None as of yet

* * *

><p><strong>Bo Stockston: <strong>West Blue's own heavy weight boxing champion Bo Stockston is the single strand of seriousness in this crew so far. This super human of a man has taken sides with Oregano in hopes of using Oregano's newly given fame as bait to lure in some worthy fighters.

**-**Epithet: None

**-**Age: 25

**-**Sex: Male

**-**Species: Human

**-**Height: 11'2''

**-**Weight: 658lbs

**-**Hair Color: Black

**-**Hair Cut: Thick black corn-rows that stick out wildly at the ends in every direction

**-**Facial Hair: Rough scruff on his sideburns with a full and bushy goatee and mustache combo that hangs down to his chest

**-**Skin Color: Black

**-**Eye Color: Brown

**-**Other Features: Bo has a permanently swollen face and eyes especially. His entire body is solid bulging muscles.

-Personality: Stern/ Dangerous

- Alignment: Neutral

-Occupation: First-Mate/Boxer

-Strengths: Inhuman strength, Monstrous Stamina, Tank Level Durability, Down to business attitude

-Weaknesses: Bad Temper, Uncooperative

-Weapons: Fists

-Attire: Bo normally wears a simple white wife-beater shirt or simply goes shirtless. He has a red warm-up jacket as well. As for his shorts he prefers them loose and of athletic style. For shoes he sports black boxing styled kicks with bright red laces. Around his hands and reaching up to his forearms is wrapped white tape.

-Representative Color: Crimson Red

-Dream: To pay-back Difetto for his attempted sabotage/ Fight worthy opponents across the world

* * *

><p><span>Plisboro Cove Characters<span>

**Dill: ** Oregano's older brother Dill! Dill is an officer at the Plisboro Cove Security Force and tends to be very dedicated to his job. He is an avid boxing fan, and Bo Stockston happens to be his favorite boxer. Dill cares a great deal about Oregano but doesn't baby him because he has respect for his kid brother.

-Age: 27

-Sex: Male

-Species: Human

-Height: 6"1'

-Weight: 220lbs

-Hair Color: Light Brown

-Hair Cut: Medium length frizzy hair

-Facial Hair: Pencil-Thin mustache

-Skin Color: Slight Tan

-Eye Color: Black

-Other Features: Dill has a noticeable scar going through his right eyebrow and across his forehead.

-Personality: Responsible/ Determined

-Alignment: Lawful Good

-Occupation: Security Officer

-Weapons: Sword, Rifle, Pistol

-Attire: Dill wears the standard Plisboro Security uniform which is colored Dark Brown and Blue. He chooses to also sport a matching cap that he tends to pull down over his eyes.

* * *

><p><strong>Papa Chives: <strong>The father of Dill and Oregano! Papa Chives is a master chef and inventor of his very own cooking style known as Habu-Habu and it consists of using many herbs and spices to prepare meals. Papa Chives is a very proud man, owning his own top grade restaurant, and more than anything very proud of his two sons.

-Age: 49

-Sex: Male

-Height: 6"4'

-Species: Human

-Weight: 280lbs

-Hair Color: Gray

-Hair Cut: Balding

-Facial Hair: Bushy full beard reaching down to his neck ending in a dramatic point

-Skin Color: Tan with slight orange tint

-Eye Color: Black

- Other Features: Papa Chives has a noticeable beer belly. His hands are normally stained with herbs and spices.

-Personality: Proud/ Light -Hearted

-Alignment: Neutral Good

-Occupation: Owner and Head Chef of Zesty Ease Restaurant

**-**Attire: Papa Chives wears a short Kelly green chef's hat on top of his head that always tilts to the right. He wears a simple off-white long sleeve shirt with a black apron on top. He sports a pair of dark burgundy pants and has a pair of flip-flops for his shoes.

* * *

><p><strong>Missy May: <strong>The mother of Dill and Oregano! Missy May is an incredibly protective mother. She has a hard time accepting her aid isn't needed. Missy May is a maestro in her own right, directing many musicals and orchestra performances as well.

**-**Age: 49

**-**Sex: Female

-Species: Human

**-**Height: 5"7'

**-**Weight: 119lbs

**-**Hair Color: Light Brown frizzy hair

**-**Hair Cut: Long reaching the middle of her back

-Skin Color: Slightly Pale

-Eye Color: Hazel

-Other Features: Missy May has some slight freckles on her cheeks

-Personality: Protective/ Finicky

-Alignment: Neutral Good

-Occupation: Music Maestro

-Attire: Missy May usually wears sundresses for her attire. She prefers flat bottom shoes, and is always seen with a bandana tied around her head keeping her hair out of her face.

* * *

><p><strong>Little Tilitia Weaso: <strong>Little Tilitia Weaso is a young girl from Plisboro Cove who was taught piano lessons by Oregano. She is prone to embarrassment but once she feels comfortable this problem goes down. She seems proud of Oregano even if he is a goof-ball in her eyes.

**-**Age: 12

**-**Sex: Female

-Species: Human

**-**Height: 5"3'

-Weight: 90lbs

-Hair Color: Blonde

-Hair Cut: Wavy shoulder length hair

**-**Skin Color: Pale

**-** Eye Color: Green

**-**Other Features: Little Tilitia has very rosy cheeks that become even more noticeable when she is embarrassed.

-Personality: Shy/ Standoffish

-Alignment: Neutral Good

-Occupation: Student

-Attire: Little Tilitia dresses mainly with light sweaters and normally wears frilled skirts. She wears boots for shoes and she has ribbons tied in her wavy hair most of the time.

* * *

><p><strong>Ramona Weaso<strong> – Ramona is Little Tilitia's Mother. She is a very good tipper, giving Oregano a large amount of beli for teaching her daughter piano. She owns the Plisboro Cove Bank.

**-**Age: 39

**-**Sex: Female

-Species: Human

**-**Height: 5"6'

**-**Weight: 120lbs

**-**Hair Color: White-Blonde

**-**Hair Cut: Curly reaching a little past her jawline.

**-**Skin Color: Pale

-Eye Color: Blue

-Other Features: Ramona has distinguishing beauty marks on her chin and cheek.

-Personality: Gracious/ Delighted

-Alignment: Neutral Good

-Occupation: Plisboro Cove Bank Owner

-Attire: Ramona usually wears pant-suits of many colors as well as high-heeled shoes.

* * *

><p><strong>Karen Grendal: <strong>The owner of the Plisboro Boating Company. Karen is an incredibly tall and lanky old lady who cares a great deal about her business. She ends up giving Oregano his ship _The Cherry Maria_ for free after he saved her business from catching fire. She sees him as a 'good' pirate.

-Age: 76

-Sex: Female

-Species: Human

-Height: 11"5'

-Weight: 160lbs

-Hair Color: Gray

-Hair Cut: Long hair kept up in a bun

-Skin Color: Pale

-Eye Color: Pink

-Other Features: Karen has a moderate amount of wrinkles for someone her age.

-Personality: Adamant/Punctual

-Alignment: Neutral

-Occupation: Owner of the Plisboro Boating Company

-Attire: Karen typically wears simple dress shirts with various patterns on them. She wears khaki capris pants normally with flip-flops.

* * *

><p><strong>Head Chief Mutton: <strong>The head Chief of the Plisboro Cove Security Force. Mutton is an incredibly hateful man and will stop at nothing to see what he wishes happen. He hates Oregano a tremendous amount for spoiling Plisboro's celebration. Mutton is the first to tell the Marines Oregano is a threat to the public.

-Age: 38

-Sex: Male

-Species: Human

- Height: 5"8'

-Weight: 181lbs

-Hair Color: Dirty Blonde

-Hair Cut: Comb-Over

-Facial Hair: Mutton styles his facial hair into mutton-chop sideburns to go with his name.

-Skin Color: Pale with a yellowish tint

-Other features: Mutton has unusually leathery skin.

-Personality: Spiteful/ Selfish

-Alignment: Lawful Evil

-Occupation: Head Chief of Plisboro Cove Security Force

-Weapons: Two swords, pistol

-Attire: Mutton wears the standard Plisboro Security uniform which is colored Dark Brown and Blue. His uniform however is adorned with red pin-striped threads along the blue of the uniform. A golden star is visible on his chest as well.

* * *

><p><span>Yortori Rise Characters<span>

**Mayor Dimblanté: **The Mayor of Sukini City. Mayor Dimblanté is a very self-centered individual always putting her reputation first so that she can stay in this position of power. She is an incredibly tall individual. She is the second to report of Oregano's problems even though he was practically a celebrity in her town from making it alive through the Unforgiving Path.

-Age: 30

-Sex: Female

-Species: Human

-Height: 12"1'

-Weight: 170lbs

-Hair Color: Black with red highlights

-Hair Cut: Straight waist length

-Skin Color: Dark Tan

-Eye Color: Light Blue

-Other Features: Incredibly well manicured and plastic surgery is obvious.

-Personality: Self-Centered/ Fake

-Alignment: Chaotic Neutral

-Occupation: Mayor of Sukini City

-Attire: The mayor wears a fancy pair of angular sun-glasses and she wears many high-class pantsuits with a royal blue badge pinned on the front indicating her status in the city.

* * *

><p><strong>Siggy: <strong>The Head-Assistant of Mayor Dimblanté. He gets bossed around by the Mayor quite a bit. He can tell how self-centered the mayor is but he doesn't have the courage to speak out about it. He is a Weanie baby.

-Age: 21

-Sex: Male

-Species: Human

-Height: 5"5'

-Weight: 159lbs

-Hair Color: Red

-Hair Cut: Tied in a Pony-Tail

-Facial Hair: Clean Shave

-Skin Color: Lilly White

-Eye Color: Yellow

-Other Features: Siggy has a pronounced curved nose.

-Personality: Spineless/ Obedient

-Alignment: Neutral

-Occupation: Head Assistant of the Sukini City Mayor.

-Attire: Siggy usually wears a simple colored shirt with khaki pants and dress shoes. He wears a pair of thin-rimmed square glasses.

* * *

><p><strong>Virgil:<strong> The Second-Assistant of Mayor Dimblanté. Virgil isn't as aware of the Mayor's selfish ways due to always being sent on pointless errands for the Mayor. He is a very desperate individual willing to work this hounding job due to being fired from many previous positions.

-Age: 20

-Sex: Male

-Species: Human

-Height: 6"4'

-Weight: 180lbs

-Hair Color: Dark Blue

-Hair Cut: Eraser Cut

-Facial Hair: Slight Stubble

-Skin Color: Pinkish Tint

-Eye Color: Blue

-Other Features: Virgil is incredibly sweat-prone and usually has sweat stains on under his arms.

-Personality: Desperate/ Pitiful

-Alignment: Neutral

-Occupation: Second- Assistant of the Mayor of Sukini City

-Attire: A buttoned shirt with black slacks is his usual attire with black dress shoes as well.

* * *

><p><span>Oion Characters<span>

**Fletcher Oilybarke: **The self-proclaimed guardian of Oion Island's Crestless Bay. Fletcher is a man who takes his role very seriously. Although he is normally a stern protector, he allowed Oregano to move past him into the city even though he was a pirate. This was mostly due to the fact that Oregano didn't see him as serious as he sees himself.

**-**Age: 32

**-**Sex: Male

-Species: Human

**-**Height: 5"6'

**-**Weight: 280lbs

**-**Hair Color: Dark Purple

**-**Hair Cut: Pompadour

**-**Facial Hair: None

**-**Skin Color: Peachy Complexion

**-**Eye Color: Hazel

**-**Other Features: Fletcher has a very oval shaped face, and he has glaring eyes. His eyes are very creepy according to Oregano.

-Personality: Confident/ Defensive

-Alignment: Lawful Good

-Occupation: Self-Proclaimed Guardian of the Coast/ Handyman

-Attire: Fletcher wears a simple all-black tracksuit outfit with black running shoes.

* * *

><p><strong>Melvin: <strong>The Bellboy of the Delightful Commons Multi-Store. Melvin is a young teenage boy who is very old-fashioned in terms of politeness and mannerisms. This is how he was taught since he grew up in the high-class environment of Oion City's Uptown.

**-**Age: 14

**-**Sex: Male

-Species: Human

Height: 5"5'

-Weight: 130lbs

-Hair Color: Blonde

-Hair Cut: Short hair with a long curl plastered on his forehead with gel.

-Facial Hair: None

-Skin Color: Pale

-Eye Color: Pink

-Other Features: Melvin is a little on the stocky side and he has freckles.

-Personality: Obedient/ Polite

-Alignment: Neutral Good (actually Chaotic Evil)

-Occupation: Bellboy

-Attire: Melvin wears a brown pin-striped suit with a white and pink polka dotted tie.

* * *

><p><strong>Vanhoogen: <strong>The legendary boxing coach of Bo Stockston! Vanhoogen is an elderly man who still has a strong flame burning within him despite his age. He is very down to earth and wisely judges the character of others.

-Age: 74

-Sex: Male

-Species: Human

-Height: 5"9'

-Weight: 150lbs

-Hair Color: White

-Hair Cut: Comb-Over

-Facial Hair: Thick Mustache

-Skin Color: Pale

-Eye Color: Brown

-Other Features: Vanhoogen has many wrinkles and liver spots on his body.

-Personality: Prominent/ Collected

-Alignment: Neutral Good

-Occupation: Boxing Coach

-Attire: Vanhoogen wears fleece sweaters and khaki pants normally with dress shoes that match his belt.

* * *

><p><strong>Chug<strong> – Chug is the sick man present at the Boxing Arena when Oregano arrives to save the day. He helps fill everyone in on the plot to sabotage Bo.

-Age: 33

-Sex: Male

-Species: Human

-Height: 6"1'

-Weight: 189lbs

-Hair Color: Beige

-Hair Cut: Short

-Facial Hair: Unshaven stubble

-Skin Color: Greenish sickly tint

-Eye Color: Green

-Other Features: Chug is an incredibly sweaty man and has a noticeable hunch that makes his body and head lean in very uncomfortable positions. He claims he is just sick, but is that all?

-Personality: Blunt/ Mellow

-Alignment: Neutral Good

-Occupation: Business Man

-Attire: Chug wears dress shirts and slacks for his usual attire.

* * *

><p><strong>C.C. Willis: <strong>C.C. Willis is the scrimmage opponent Bo was set to fight while the sabotage scheme was taking place. C.C. is a tomato can of a boxer and has never achieved fame or recognition in the boxing community.

-Age: 26

-Sex: Male

-Species: Human

-Height: 6"6'

-Weight: 259lbs

-Hair Color: Violet

-Hair Cut: Buzz

-Facial Hair: Simple Goatee

-Skin Color: Cream Color

-Eye Color: Orange

-Other Features: C.C. has a very pronounced jawline. This is due to it being broken multiple times in his career. What a glass jaw.

-Personality: Dreary/Fragile

-Alignment: Neutral

-Occupation: Boxer

-Attire: C.C. often wears a simple tank top with athletic shoes and shorts.

* * *

><p><strong>Fredrick Fiddlestein<strong> – Fredrick is the referee present during Bo's scrimmage match against C.C. Willis. He is a very impatient man and tends to be panic and not think clearly when rushed.

**-**Age: 44

**-**Sex: Male

**-**Species: Human

**-**Height: 6"2'

**-**Weight: 266lbs

**-**Hair Color: Auburn

**-**Hair Cut: Medium length wavy hair

**-**Facial Hair: Clean Shaven

**-**Skin Color: Pasty White

**-**Eye Color: Blue

**-**Other Features: Fredrick is a rather chubby man with the only exception being his face which is abnormally bony.

-Personality: Panicky/ Brash

-Alignment: Neutral

-Occupation: Referee

-Attire: Fredrick is always seen in his standard referee uniform. His friends and family have gotten used to this rather peculiar trait after much time.

* * *

><p><strong>Hachirou <strong>– Hachirou is one of the goonies under Difetto. He was the member hiding in the vacant floor in the Delightful Commons. He seems to have a high rank within Difetto's organization due to him reporting directly to the boss over the phone.

**-**Age: 32

**-**Sex: Male

**-**Species: Human

**-**Height: 5"7'

**-**Weight: 153lbs

**-**Hair Color: Navy

**-**Hair Cut: Bowl Cut

**-**Facial Hair: Soul Patch

**-**Skin Color: Pale

**-**Eye Color: Gray

**-**Other Features: Hachirou has a large scar going across his upper lip vertically.

-Personality: Nervous/Submissive

-Alignment: Evil

-Occupation: Criminal Underling

-Weapons: Dagger, Pistol

-Attire: Hachirou wears a black trench coat with a white and brown striped shirt underneath of it. He has black pants and dark brown boots as well.

* * *

><p><strong>Tomiko<strong> – Tomiko is the member of Difetto's secret organization that spilled all the information to Bo in the storage vault.

-Age: 29

-Sex: Male

-Species: Human

-Height: 5"7'

-Weight: 171lbs

-Hair Color: Orange

-Hair Cut: Gelled Flips

-Facial Hair: Clean Shaven

-Skin Color: Rosy Complexion

-Eye Color: Hazel

-Other Features: Tomiko has the number '123' tattooed under his left eye.

-Personality: Nervous/ Anticipating

-Alignment: Evil

-Occupation: Criminal Underling

-Weapons: Brass Knuckles, knifes

-Attire: Tomiko wears a dark indigo cloak over a forest green sweater. He has black sweat pants on and dark gray boots.

* * *

><p><span>Burning Stallion Pirates<span>

**Barnaban Nooseclef – **The captain of the Burning Stallion Pirates! Barnaban is a relatively known pirate in West Blue and is most famous for his love for horses, swimming, and plant life. Besides being a pirate Barnaban is also a Botanist. He creates many hybrid species himself that he uses for different situations.

**-**Epithet: 'Burning Stallion'

**-**Age: 42

**-**Sex: Male

**-**Species: Human

**-**Height: 6"4'

**-**Weight: 188lbs

**-**Hair Color: White

**-**Hair Cut: Spikes

**-**Facial Hair: Rough Stubble and a thin white mustache

**-**Skin Color: Slight tan

**-**Eye Color: Teal

**-**Other Features: Barnaban has a slightly wrinkled forehead and a few scars on his face

-Personality: Pleasant/Honest

-Alignment: Neutral Good

-Occupation: Pirate Captain/Botanist/Jockey

-Weapons: Wooden Blades/Special Plants

-Attire: Barnaban sports a button up jacket with many medallions on it, underneath he normally wears a V-neck shirt. For his pants he prefers corduroys and he also wears a pair of black boots. For accessories Barnaban wears a swimmers cap on his head and he also sports a leather belt.

-Bounty: 5,000,000 Belli

* * *

><p><strong>Curtis Crowsby –<strong> The doctor of the Burning Stallion Pirates Curtis is an exceptional doctor with many connections in West Blue. He was the one who presented Oregano with his cast, crutch and pain medication. He has been a member of Barnaban's crew for 2 years.

-Age: 34

-Sex: Male

-Species: Human

-Height: 6"1'

-Weight: 179lbs

-Hair Color: Dark Brown

-Hair Cut: Parted Cut

-Facial Hair: Circle Beard

- Skin Color: Caramel Tint

- Eye Color: Gray

- Other Features: Curtis has an incredibly defined cleft in his chin

-Personality: Reliable/Prepared

-Alignment: Neutral Good

-Occupation: Pirate Doctor

-Weapons: Tomahawks

-Attire: Curtis usually sports a sea foam green lab coat buttoned up all the way to the neck. He wears white scrub pants, red sneakers and a faded purple bandana on his head as well. Curtis has a pair of thick rimmed glasses and carries a brief case of material with him.

* * *

><p><strong>Kayla Quasi –<strong> Kayla is the chef of the Burning Stallion Pirates. She is a very easy going young lady who enjoys making corny jokes. Kayla's very own restaurant was destroyed and she was left with nothing. Barnaban was a regular at the restaurant and offered her a position once he found out about the tragedy. She loves using Barnaban's plants in the meals she cooks. She has been a member for 1 and a half years now.

**-**Age: 26

**-**Sex: Female

**-**Species: Human

**-** Height: 5"6'

**-**Weight: 112lbs

**-**Hair Color: Light Blue

**-**Hair Cut: Curly Bob Cut

**-**Skin Color: Snow White

-Eye Color: Black

**-**Other Features: Kayla has 4 symmetrical beauty marks on her face, two of them under her eyes and two above her mouth.

-Personality: Grateful/ Laid Back

-Alignment: Neutral Good

-Occupation: Pirate Chef

-Weapons: Bo-Staff, Katana

-Attire: Kayla often wears a short sundress as her outfit of choice. She usually has an apron on the outside of the dress as well. Kayla wears simple sneakers with this outfit as well as a pair of knee high socks.

* * *

><p><strong>Nester Nubey –<strong> The navigator of the Burning Stallion Pirates. Nester is a very collected individual only speaking when he feels necessary. He always felt comfortable out at sea since he was a young boy so the art of navigating soon found its way into his life. He saw Barnaban as a way to stay at sea where he felt the best and he took advantage of this opportunity. He has been a member for 1 year.

**-**Age: 25

**-**Sex: Male

**-**Species: Human

**-**Height: 5"5'

**-**Weight: 143lbs

**-**Hair Color: Burgundy

**-**Hair Cut: Fade

**-**Facial Hair: 5 O'clock shadow

-Skin Color: Black

-Eye Color: Green

**-**Other Features: Nester lips are an abnormally white color.

-Personality: Quiet/ Calculating

-Alignment: Neutral Good

-Occupation: Pirate Navigator

-Weapons: Crossbow

-Attire: Nester wears very fluffy clothing. He sports a gray long sleeve shirt as well as baggy blue sweatpants. He has a pair of black work boots as well.

**?**

**?**

**?**

* * *

><p><span>The Rascal Pirates<span>

**Remey Bolton –** The captain of the Rascal pirates! Remey is a dangerous pirate who sails around West Blue looking for any opportunity he can to either get riches or power. His aim is to eventually make it to the Grand-line when his crew building is completed. Remey is very powerful and ruthless when pushed to the limit. He has a bone to pick with Oregano as well for leading the Marines to him back at Yortori Rise.

**-**Epithet: '8-Fold'

**-**Age: 24

**-**Sex: Male

**-**Species: Human

**-**Height: 6"8'

**-**Weight: 225lbs

**-**Hair Color: Dark Gray

**-**Hair Cut: Liberty Spikes

**-**Facial Hair: Goatee no Mustache with stubble along his jawline

**-**Skin Color: Pale

**-**Eye Color: Red

**-**Other Features: Remey has many eyebrow piercings as well as lip and ear. He also has sleeves of tattoos as well as tattoos going up his neck. Most of the tattoos are images of cranes (The bird).

-Personality: Demented/Spiteful

-Alignment: Neutral Evil

-Occupation: Pirate Captain

-Weapons: Serrated Blade

-Attire: Remey wears tattered tank tops with punk based words normally written across the front of them. For pants he usually wears ripped tight jeans. Remey wears high-top sneakers as well. Chains are worn from his belt as well as around his writs and around his neck. Remey also wears a white headband with 8 black squares around it. Occasionally he will wear an electric yellow shredded vest as well. Everything he wears is meant to expose his tattoos.

-Devil Fruit: ?

-Bounty: 19,600,000 Belli

* * *

><p><strong>Andreli Itsel – <strong>The Helmsman of the Rascal Pirates! Andreli is a loud mouthed fast talking man who can't stop rambling. He has a very unusual body shape. His torso is completely barrel shaped where as his arms and legs are long thin and lanky. Could there by something odd resulting from that odd body? Andreli was also almost shot by Oregano and holds a grudge against him for that.

**-**Age: 23

**-**Sex: Male

**-**Species: Human

**-**Height: 7"7'

**-**Weight: 289lbs

**-**Hair Color: Pink

**-**Hair Cut: Jerry-Curl

**-**Facial Hair: Thin-Parted Mustache

**-**Skin Color: Tan

**-**Eye Color: Dark Blue

**-**Other Features: Andreli has incredibly large nostrils.

-Personality: Talkative/ Dopey

-Alignment: Evil Neutral

-Occupation: Pirate Helmsman

-Weapons: Lance

-Attire: Andreli usually wears a poncho over his torso that hangs all the way down to his knees. Underneath his poncho he wears a plain gray t-shirt. He wears faded black jeans and dark red boots as well.

**?**

**?**

**?**

**?**

* * *

><p><span>Marines<span>

**Lieutenant Commander Difetto - **Difetto is the low-life marine that is behind many underhanded schemes in West Blue. He has no visible morals and is truly a selfish and terrible man. From pinning false claims on Oregano and setting an entire city on fire himself, to trying to cripple Bo and win a boxing bet with an upset. Difetto has numerous strikes against him. Not to mention he has an organization of criminals beneath him and he does dealings with the notorious Skrullton Labs.

-Age: 33

-Sex: Male

-Species: Human

-Height: 5"8'

-Weight: 168lbs

-Hair Color: Hazelnut

-Hair Cut: Short Parted Cut

-Facial Hair: Clean Shaven

-Skin Color: Pale

-Eye Color: Green

-Other Features: Difetto has a burn scar over his right eye and down to his cheek.

-Personality: Deceitful/Despicable

-Alignment: Lawful Evil

-Occupation: Marine Lieutenant Commander

-Weapons: Rapier

-Attire: Difetto wears the standard marine uniform with a specialized light blue marine coat draped over his shoulders with a camouflage design using different shades of blue on the interior of the coat.

* * *

><p><strong>Captain Bleucubber – <strong>The Marine Captain of Base 119! Captain Bleucubber is a very powerful man being able to cause massive sandstorms from just the swing of his mighty spear. Bleucubber feels a great deal of grief for not taking preparations against Oregano despite being warned. He plans on taking out the rookie in order to make up for the city of Oion Oregano falsely is accused of burning down.

**-**Epithet: 'Dust Bowl'

**-**Age: 54

**-**Sex: Male

**-**Species: Human

**-**Height: 6"3'

**-**Weight: 244lbs

-Hair Color: Navy

-Hair Cut: Balding Mullet reaching the center of his back

-Facial Hair: Full Beard reaching his chest

-Skin Color: Pinkish

-Eye Color: Turquoise

-Other Features: Bleucubber has a few liver spots on his cheeks.

-Personality: Skeptical/ Impatient

-Alignment: Lawful Neutral

-Occupation: Marine Captain of Base 119

-Weapons: Spear, katana

-Attire: Bleucubber wears a standard marine coat draped over a light brown suit. He wears a chocolate brown undershirt and a pastel blue tie as well.

* * *

><p><strong>Chief Petty Officer Avey - The<strong> marine who helped escort Oregano (Dave Davids) out of the fires he was accused of starting. Avey is a kind marine desperately looking for the good in society. He has a strong standing against anything he claims evil. He was beside himself with anger when he found out it was Oregano himself that he had escorted to safety. He figured Oregano had been playing him for a fool the whole time and couldn't think clear. He was then sent flying with a punch from Bo.

**-**Age: 24

**-**Sex: Male

-Species: Human

-Height: 5"10'

-Weight: 155lbs

-Hair Color: White-Blonde Bleached

-Hair Cut: Shoulder length straight hair

-Facial Hair: Clean Shaven

-Skin Color: Dark Bronze Tan

-Eye Color: Cloudy White

-Other Features: Avey has gauges in his ears.

-Personality: Righteous/Hopeful

-Alignment: Lawful Good

-Occupation: Marine Chief Petty Officer

-Weapons: Short Sword, Pistol

-Attire: Avey wears a standard marine uniform but he wears it very loosely with a few buttons undone. He also wears the standard marine cap reversed on his head.

* * *

><p><span>Interesting Information and Trivia – <span>

*Bo was originally planned to be named Boo*

*Kaira was the one who picked Tompkins to be a seagull*

*Among Oregano's many cousins he has two that are both famous pirates as well. One of them is a incredibly worldly known*

*At one point, Oregano was planned to be efficient in using explosives and bombs over firearms*

*I didn't decide to give Oregano the bad luck aspect of his character until the moment I was about to start writing the very first paragraph. I scrapped everything I had written and started over with this character trait in mind.*

*Oregano's 4th crew-mate (excluding his pets) is who I am currently looking forward to writing about the most.*

* Barnaban gets his horse theme from him growing up as a jockey. He competed in horse racing and horseback swimming competitions.*

*Polen's specific species of koala is found only in the Grand-line. They are known as Marble Koalas. The name comes from the marbled colorations seen on their fur. Polen was shipped to West Blue as a baby.*

*Avey is a passionate surfer.*

*Vanhoogen has not always just coached boxing in the West Blue.*

*Bo is ambidextrous.*

*'Difetto' is the Italian word for defective*

*Bleucubber has been Captain of Base 119 for 10 years*

*Remey is a relatively new pirate to make a name for himself in West Blue as well. He has already made quite an impact. He set sail a month and a half before Oregano.*

About Me! -

Hey there readers! I figured I would take a little time and let you all know a little bit about myself!

I am a 23 year old male and I recently graduated college from North Carolina State University. I majored in Environmental Technology and Management and I minoring in Toxicology.

This One Piece Fanfic is the very first fan-fiction story I have ever written. I have always loved writing but have never expressed it through this media. The only bit of experience I have with writing based on other stories would be a limited amount of role play writing that I have done in the past with Orrahn. It was a couple years ago when we were sophomores in High School. This was when we first started to Role play within the world of One Piece. We created the crew that is now known as the Rift Pirates and went back and forth on the site for a couple months at a time within the length of two or three years.

Now a little bit more about me personally-

My hobbies include - Table tennis, basket ball, disc golf, board games, listening to music, trying new foods, collecting t-shirts and shoes, and my biggest hobby of all is drawing.

I find myself drawing throughout the entire day. I love to express myself through my art – I will be sure to get some pictures of Oregano and the crew up soon and will provide some links for you all to see! I might draw some comic strips with them as well!

My interests are – Cartoons (Especially Classic Nickelodeon), Comics/Manga, Video Games (Mainly fighters and retro games), Animals, Dinosaurs, Music of all kinds and art in general.

Now for some One Piece related information regarding my own tastes-

-My favorite One Piece Characters off the top of my head – In no particular order:

Magellan

Vergo

Blackbeard

Comil

Aokiji

-Favorite Supernova:

Capone

-My Favorite Arcs would have to be – Again in no particular order:

Impel Down

Sabaody

Jaya

Marineford

Skypeia

** A/N - Well that's really all I have for right now! I will gladly answer any other questions any of you readers might have.

I hope you have enjoyed this information sheet and I hope it helps keep my characters and story in order for you and myself alike!

Thanks again to all the continued support to all the readers and reviewers! All the feedback is greatly appreciated! **

-peanutbutterlung (Whale)


	19. Sorus Chapter 3 part 1

Just What is Appatus's Secret To His Infinite Supply of Tobacco?

By: Orrahn

A Special thanks to Oggytheogre321

Callahan Prison: Maroon Island

Waves crashed onto the rocks of the island fortress that was Maroon Island. A deadly array of rocks sat just off the shore of the island on all sides, many of the rocks not even visible above the waves. The shore itself was extremely short, being only about twelve feet of beaches before reaching a fearsome sixty foot rise on all side save the very front which had a straight, rocky incline leading to the top and the heavily guarded entrance of Callahan Prison.

Callahan prison was quite literally, a fortress. The prison had sixty foot cliffs on all sides except for the very front which was where prisoners entered the prison by means of the steep and rocky slope leading to the front of the island where the docks were. The Prison itself consisted of four buildings named Building A, B, C and D with A being the outermost and D being the innermost of the complex. The first three were rings of decreasing size from the outermost to innermost with rings of open areas in between. The final building on the inside was a four story tower that was obviously the command center of the prison where all of the officers and the warden himself resided.

Though not apparent from the outside, "Building D" actually had several two floors beneath the first. It was in the bottom most floors that the events of the following night will revolve around. It was on this floor "Rage King" Rippa Voit was being held, his massive form bolted to the the back wall of his cell by large metal bands that wrapped around both ankles, wrists and his waist. He had to have been at least eleven feet tall with biceps the size of his head, which considering his size, was quite large as well. The immensely muscular man had short black hear with sideburn that ran down the side of his face to turn into a fairly well trimmed beard and mustache combo.

"Well well, Mr. Rage King!" A high pitched, yet masculine voice addressed the captive.

Voit grunted and looked down, standing before him was the current warden of the prison. Warden Danu Tiberius was a rather average sized man at six foot seven. In contrast to the overly hairy Voit, Tiberius was completely bald with very smooth features save for the small black mustache that rested just above his upper lip and was parted in the middle. The warden was very darkly dressed beginning with his black officer style coat that was buttoned so tight, the undershirt could not be seen. The base of the coat made it halfway to his knees while the collar ended just below his jaw. The only parts of the jacket that were not black were the two sets of three white stripes that began at either shoulder that ended halfway to his elbow and the pocket on the left side of his chest which had a white flap to cover the pocket. The arms of the jacket reached all the way down to his hands which were covered by a pair of white gloves. His pants were also black and reached all the way down to his shiny black shoes. Finally, Tiberius wore his signature black straight sword on his left hip.

After realizing that Voit was simply staring at him, Tiberius grimaced in anger "TALK! You hulking brute!" Tiberius screamed, his high pitched voice echoing throughout the room as he jumped into the air and smacked Voit in the face with the side of sword with incredible speed. "You better stop being so stubborn or you won't last a week in Impel down!" the warden grinned savagely as he reminded Voit where he would be heading in one day's time.

A hot fluid that Voit figured was blood trailed down the side of his head that had been hit. The 'Rage King' let out a slight grunt as he awkwardly rubbed the bleeding part of his head on his shoulder before straightening it once more and looking back at the warden with no expression in his eyes.

"Ya know?" Tiberius began as he scratched his chin "For someone known as the 'Rage King' you sure are hard to piss off!"

"That's because you're doing it wrong you dumb warden!" A new voice interrupted, startling both Voit and Tiberius to look up in shock. Literally standing upside down on the ceiling was a third man who had seemingly come out of nowhere.

"Alastir…" Voit mumbled, saying his first words of the entire conversation.

"Who the hell are you?" The warden exclaimed in surprise before jumping and swiping at the newcomer with his sword.

"Woah, chill dude!" The man known as Alastir stated as he suddenly dropped from the ceiling and did a double backflip before landing on the floor perfectly, just narrowly avoiding the warden's blade. "Wow, you're faster than I thought you'd be!" Alastir complimented before placing his hands up into the air. "Relax, I'm here to help, I am part of the Enforcer's Four!"

Warden Tiberius froze "Enforcer's four?" he asked incredulously as he looked Alastir over. The man was not very intimidating; he was about the warden's height and even less in weight. He had an easy-to-notice, dramatically hooked nose with a gold nose ring on the left nostril. His hair was a silver-white color and long enough so that he could tie it back into a ponytail. His eyebrows were the same color and had two gold rings pierced into edge of the right brow. His most noticeable facial feature, however, was the wicked scar that curved around the outside his right eye

The man himself was tall and thin and dressed in noble colors. He wore an elegant, long sleeve purple dress shirt embroidered with gold, to go with his dark burgundy fancy pants, also with embroidered gold. These two articles of clothing were attached by means of black leather and gold buckled belt. He also wore a beautiful pair of black leather boots and gloves to match, both with gold trim. All of these elegant clothes were shrouded in his signature dark emerald cloak whose hood was currently off and resting back on the cape portion, slightly covering the gold emblem of his home nation. Though Tiberius could barely see the black and gold hilts over his cloak, he could tell that Alastir carried two ornate katana on his back.

"Yea, Enforcer's Four, can you not hear?" Alastir retaliated "The name's Alastir, maybe you have heard of me."

Yes, Tiberius had heard of him, all four members of the Enforcer's Four were quite famous as the strongest citizens of the west blue. These four warriors offered their services to the world government for a variety of reasons like bringing glory to their respective nations, some personal debt to the government or simply for the fun of it. These four people were as feared in the west blue as the Shichibukai were on the grand line and they didn't even have to be pirates first.

'The Fat Monk', 'Golden Cannon', 'The Fang of Lystor' and 'Royal Assassin', these four warriors had all made quite an impact on the ocean since they decided to form the organization several years back. 'Royal Assassin' Alastir was the youngest of the group at the age of 26 and rose to fame through his talents in infiltration as the King of Grismald's "aide". It was on his King's behalf that Alastir became the fourth and final member of the Enforcer's Four. Though certainly not the strongest of the four, that title belonged to another, rumors surrounding Alastir often involved the use of strange powers.

"I thought that Gorboh was supposed to come here since he's the only one who has been to the grand line." Tiberius responded, trying his hardest to keep his sense of superiority, which had become an essential part of his being in all his time as a warden where the only people he saw were his underlings and a bunch of chained up prisoners.

"Chill Tiberius, that fat ass was busy with something else right now so he will hitch a ride here with the convoy to get here tomorrow morning, I am here to guard him until he gets here." Alastir responded to the warden's rather rude question.

"Humph… like I need help anyways" Tiberius responded as he motioned for Alastir to step out of the room "Let's go back to my office, no point in being down here with the prisoner"

Meanwhile on the _Bladed Fury_

The _Bladed Fury _cut across the ocean like a knife, waves parting as the fearsome brown Galion passed them. The sails and flag of the pirate ship now bore a new emblem, the emblem of the Burning Sun Pirates. The Jolly Roger had been perfectly painted with Appatus's artistic talents.

Appatus began by painting two double-swords with yellow hilts and grey blades. These two double-swords crossed to form four right angles in the center of the flag and sails. After this, Appatus painted the skull with shades of red-orange paint, modeling it after a fire ball. Instead of having the top of the skull rounded off, it got wider so that several tails of fire could trail above it. The bottom of the skull lacked a jaw so it ended with three elongated teeth. This skull sat on the intersection of the blades, preventing most of the yellow hilts from being seen.

As detailed as the logo was, the majority of the attention was currently being turned to the deck of the ship where people were yelling and causing a ruckus.

"Yo, Sorus, don't let em' throw us off!" Vince pleaded to his friend from Mozorella Island.

"Yea, friends don't let friends throw friends into the ocean… man" Marko added to Vince's plea.

"Yo, Marko, wasn't that a bit redundant? You coulda just told him that he wouldn't throw us off if he was our friend." Vince responded before anyone else on the ship had a chance to.

"I guess you're right, we really shouldn't go around using the same word too much, I could have easily said pal instead… man" Marko replied, much to the annoyance of everyone else on the ship.

"Would you two shut up!" exclaimed a big and slightly plump man who wore a red bandanna tied around his head to contrast his long black beard. The man had a red shirt and torn black shorts with no shoes. At his waist, the man had a yellow sash where his sword and pistol were sheathed. He then turned to his new captain "Sir, should I throw them off. The annoying bastards must have snuck into the crew as we boarded!" The man growled.

Sorus grimaced in response as he looked down at Marko and Vince before turning his head to the man. A long, frustrated sigh could be heard before Sorus broke the silence once more "Let em' stay!" Sorus growled, obviously annoyed by the whole situation. The red-haired warrior looked as if he was struggling to say his next words "They are my friends…" He said at last, crushing his glass of orange juice while he was at it.

"THAT'S MY MAN!" Vince yelled in excitement as he jumped at Sorus with open arms only to be shoved to the ground in mid-air by the red-haired swordsman.

"Besides" Sorus added "the more men the better, we are attacking THE Callahan Prison after all." He concluded as he looked around the ship to see mostly solemn faces. Sorus busted into laughter "DAHAHAHAHAHA, you guys aren't backing out now, you've seen my strength! Don't you wanna get famous! Come on, every man woman and child in the West Blue will know our names after tonight DAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

There was a brief moment of silence before the crowd erupted into cheers. Sorus smiled at his accomplishment and entered his cabin to see Antil, Ope and Appatus. "I see ya got em' fired up." Ope growled as he sharpened his battle axes.

"I can't say that I'm surprised." Antil added while cleaning out his rifle at the far side of the square table in the captain's quarters.

Appatus watched while Sorus walked up to his own desk and laid his swords on the table to sharpen them himself. Appatus removed the pipe from his mouth and puffed out a couple of rings before he began to speak. "First, I must commend you on rallying the men, I have never seen them so fired up for battle before. "The gazillient spoke in his normal, sophisticated manner.

Sorus grunted in response to this compliment "They better not fail me though." He grumbled irritably.

"I assure you that these young gentlemen are some of the strongest in these seas. If anyone can break through that wall of cliffs they call a prison, it would be them." Appatus stated before taking another puff from his pipe and speaking again "Which brings me to my next topic, the sun is beginning to set and the _Bladed Fury_ is nearing Maroon Island. Would you be able to share the battle plan with us?" Appatus asked with grunts of approval from Antil and Ope.

"Battle plan?" Sorus growled to the three now wide-eyed pirates. "Oh right, a battle plan" Sorus grumbled, catching his mistake "I got an Idea."

The three others sat for several seconds in silence before Appatus interrupted it "Well, would you care to share it with us?" Appatus began "I may have a couple of revisions to this 'idea' that you might want to hear."

Later that day: Outside Maroon Island

The emergency boat splashed into the water, Sorus's squad of five men was now in position. They were still several miles out, but Sorus and Appatus wanted it that way so that the lookouts on Maroon Island would not see _The Bladed Fury_ on the horizon.

"Don't row yet!" Sorus growled to his crew of four which included three of the strongest melee fighters (excluding Appatus and Ope) and Marko, who begged to go with Sorus. His crew consisted of the bearded man who tried to throw Vince and Marko overboard earlier who ended up being a respectable swordsman named Lugh. They also had a man from Urlocker's crew with short orange hair with two cutlasses simply called "Trapper" and a man with long black hair who fought with a single large battle axe who ended up being Ope's younger brother Tarz.

The crew sat still for over an hour so that the sun could completely set in the western horizon before Sorus stood up at the bow of the rowboat and pulled out his compass. "Alright!" He growled "Start rowin'to the south!" Sorus was really thankful to have a skilled navigator like Appatus who could figure out where he could drop the boat so that the currents would position him in an hour so that they could row south and reach the northern cliffs of the island.

"It's dark, can't we use a torch… man?" Marko whined as he pulled on the oar in the back left of the ship.

"That beats the purpose of a surprise attack, idiot." Lugh growled from his oar in the back right. "Can't we just throw him in the water captain?"

Lugh snarled whilst eyeing Marko with hate.

"No!" Sorus growled in response, not giving any reason or backup for his answer.

Marko smiled at this, he was happy that the captain was showing favoritism towards him.

"ROW!" Sorus bellowed at Marko who had gotten off pace "Or I'll gut you myself, and I am way worse than being thrown into the ocean." Sorus threatened, the red-haired warrior looking not unlike a lion at that particular moment.

"Y-yes sir" Marko stuttered in response as he drastically increased his rowing speed to a point where Lugh had to keep up with him "…man" Marko added under his breath.

Meanwhile on _The Bladed Glory_

Ope steered the ship a hard left once they were clear of Sorus's rowboat. Appatus and Sorus made it clear that they could not be sighted by anyone until the attack had begun. If they did happen to get sighted and reported to the prison by another ship, the whole plan would be ruined and the entire crew would probably become a lot more familiar with Callahan Prison than they intended to be.

This was the reason Appatus busted into a fit of coughs when Antil announced that he could see another ship from the look out. "Hold on, it's a pirate ship." Antil followed up as he took another look with the spy glass.

An audible collection of sighs resonated throughout the ship while Appatus wiped the tears the coughing had cause from his eyes, grabbed his pipe, stood back up and took another puff as if nothing had happened.

"Get to battle stations!" Ope roared to the men who began to scramble on the deck to get to the three canons on the side of the approaching ship.

Appatus was quick to toss his hands up into the air to tell the men to stop "Woah now, gentlemen." He said calmly but clearly with his pipe in his right hand. "Let's not get ahead of ourselves and cause unnecessary attention with canon fire." He reasoned.

The men all calmed down and went back to their positions "M'bad cap- I mean sir!" Ope apologized, realizing his mistake.

"No don't be my friend, in any other situation that would have been the right call. Which makes me wonder what another crew is doing out here." Appatus stated to the grizzled veteran.

"Sir, they are raising a white flag" Antil announced to the crew from the lookout perch.

"Hmm, let them pull up next to us and hear what they have to say" Appatus ordered his men who all prepared their weapons and stood at the ready in case they tried to attack.

The other pirate ship, though becoming less and less visible in the darkening sky was a sloop with a brown guppy for the figurehead. The sails were painted with the crew's emblem which looked like a whirlpool with a skull in the middle. "Hail!" Called someone from the ship "who is the captain of this fine vessel, I do not recognize your flag!"

Appatus took a step forward and blew a couple of smoke rings "I could say the same about your emblem myself." Appatus replied calmly.

"That is understandable since so many new pirate crews have formed since Whitebeard's speech." The other man responded, it was too dark to see his figure too clearly though, him and the entire crew of that ship seemed to be wearing long sleeved, baby blue shirts with one large white spiral an on the chest and many small white and grey spirals on their arms and backs. The speaking member seemed to be the only one without a matching baby blue and white spiral bandana, but instead let his long, curly white hair fall freely. "So you are the captain I presume?" he asked Appatus.

"Not quite, the name is Appatus the Gazelle and I am standing in for my captain while he is away. This is the ship of Kidarou Sorus, The Burning Sun" Appatus responded to the man after several seconds of smoking from his pipe.

A murmur went through the other crew as they heard Appatus's name, Appatus seemed to be a fairly well known name in terms of west blue pirates, he did have a bounty, though it was not very big. "Standing in?" The man asked "No matter, the name is Stughorn Bartree I am also standing in for my captain, 'Spiral' Weldo and we will save him at any cost!" He yelled into the passionate roars of approval from his crew.

"I am sorry to inform you that I have never heard of that name before." Appatus replied as he raised an eyebrow at the direction this conversation was making him take. "He wouldn't happen to be in Callahan would he?"

"Yup, he went into town once by himself and never came out, those filthy marines musta taken him and thrown him in prison!" Bartree bellowed as his crew sobbed in the background "And now here we are to bust him out!" He cheered with his crewmates through his streaming tears as. "Now move aside, we are raisin' tha sails!" This order was met with an eruption of cheers from his crew.

Appatus took one last puff from his pipe and blew a couple of smoke rings. "Hold it right there gentlemen!" Appatus stated clearly to the other crew. After getting no response for they were too busy getting ready, Appatus gave Antil the nod.

Silence struck the ocean as a single rifle shot rang out, Antil had fired his rifle. The other crew stood there dumbstruck and checked to see if someone had been shot. "That was just to get your attention gentlemen." Appatus clarified, he sure had gotten the attention of the Spiral Pirates, though they had to wait because the plaid-clad navigator had to take another puff from his pipe. "Now you may not want to be so hasty for our goals are the same."

"Y-you mean your captain is in there too?" Bartree stuttered his response.

"You could say that." Appatus responded steadily while he scratched his blond goatee and straightened his round spectacles.

"Then you will join us!" Bartree responded with obvious excitement in his voice.

"No, rather I ask you to join us in our own assault later tonight, we have a plan." Appatus responded as he grabbed a prototype flag that he had messed up while trying to get all the details that Sorus wanted and the flaming skull ended up being a pale blue. "Fly this flag and attack with us." He said as he tossed the folded up flag across the gap between the two ships.

Bartree caught the flag and hesitated for a moment before responding as if contemplating to fly the flag of another crew for the sake of their captain. "We will do it!" He said to another eruption of cheers and a single, yet unidentifiable jeer from his crew.

Maroon Island: North Beach

The rowboat scraped against the rocky beach as it finally reached the shore after an hour of rowing; it was now completely dark save for the crescent moon and the stars that were sprinkled across the sky.

Four of the men hopped out silently whilst Marko clamored out of the boat and plopped into the shallow water. Lugh winced at this but held his tongue; it was time to be serious.

"That's quite a climb." Trapper noted as he gazed at the menacing, sixty foot cliff before him.

"Aye!" Tarz agreed as he made sure his axe was securely fastened to his back.

"So what do I fasten this rope to… man?" Marko asked as he waddled up, completely drenched and holding a hundred feet of climbing rope that the crew had completely failed to notice was completely wrapped around his body.

"You don't!" Sorus, who had lagged a bit behind to tie his towel around his neck growled as he stopped about ten feet from the wall and drew one of his double bladed swords and separated it at the center. Sorus then began to run at the wall full speed. "Let's go!" he ordered, it was at this moment that the swordsman lept through the air and dug his blades into the wall using them to climb his way up the wall with his upper body alone.

The rest of the men climbed behind him, all using different styles. Trapper used his length to grab nice hold after nice hold, Tarz used his strength to launch himself further up the wall at every opportunity, Lugh preferred the slow and steady route and Marko preferred to fall off the wall at every attempt.

"Sorus!" Marko called out "Help me… man" he added as he lay on his back, looking up at Sorus.

"Dammit!" Sorus cursed as he crashed to the ground next to Marko. "Where's that rope? We are running out of time!"

It took mere seconds for Sorus to slice off a 16 foot cut of the rope and sling it around Marko. "Not so tight… man" Marko moaned while his captain pulled the knot until it could not go any tighter. Sorus then went to work tying an equally sturdy knot around himself before launching himself back onto the wall.

There were a few seconds of screaming, a few seconds of Marko moaning "manmanmanmanmanmanman" and then there was nothing. 'He musta fallen unconscious.' Sorus thought to himself as he continued tearing his way up the rock wall, Marko's limp body skipping along the cliff's face.

Sorus tore past Lugh, who was currently about halfway up the wall. "Grab on!" Sorus growled, his muscles pulsing whilst his swords tore into the face of the cliff. Lugh didn't have much chance to respond before being hit in the face by a now unconscious Marko. "Grab the rope!" Sorus repeated, "we don't have time for you to caress the whole cliff!"

Lugh did as he was told, grabbing the rope several feet above the ragdoll like Marko who even he had begun to feel a bit a pity for after seeing him bounce against the rocks while being suspended by Sorus who didn't even know the meaning of the word gentle. "Here we go" Lugh grumbled as he began was walk his feet along the cliff, trying his hardest to keep up with his captain's vicious speed.

"Pull them up!" Sorus ordered Trapper and Tarz once he had met them at the top of the cliff. Trapper and Tarz exchanged confused looks before they finally noticedthe rope. The two immediately went to work with Tarz pulling the rope while trapper reached his lanky arms over the edge of the cliff so that Lugh could grab it and get help over the edge. Lugh collapsed on the ground and panted heavily with relief as Trapper pulled up the still unconscious and bleeding Marko just in time for Sorus to slice through his end of the rope with one clean slash of his sword.

"Wake up fat ass!" Sorus growled as he kicked Marko in the side.

Marko suddenly rolled to his feet and whipped his pistols out. "I got your back captain!" He said before realizing how much he had overreacting "…man" he added.

"Everyone get up! I'm gonna break us in!" Sorus commanded his men.

The men starred at the fortress in front of them "Err… how exactly do you plan on getting over this twenty foot stone wall with no doors on this side."

Sorus simply grinned at this "It's just stone…" the swordsman stated before reconnecting his blades and drawing the other double sword from his back. "Stand back" he commanded as he began to spin the blades in each hand with amazing speed, this was going to require one of his strongest techniques.

Just South of Maroon Island 

The alarm siren being given off from Callahan Prison blared through the night air. Appatus removed his pipe from his mouth and exhaled before leaving the cabin. "Gentlemen," He announced in his typical calm and clear tone "that alarm is our signal, so let us make haste." The original members of Appatus's crew began to raise anchor and prepared to sail to shore. The members of the spiral pirates and those merged into the crew from Urlocher's crew on the other hand, simply starred at Appatus, unsure if he was giving them a compliment or an order."

Noticing this dilemma, Ope jumped forward and let loose a bloodthirsty roar "TO BATTLE!" He screamed, causing both ships to be overcome with the sounds of steel on steel and war cries. The crews were fired up.

"Ope" Appatus said to get his friend's attention before putting the pipe back in his mouth and taking another puff.

"Yes?" The veteran responded¸ quite used to the slow manner that Appatus typically spoke with.

Appatus blew a couple of smoke rings in response and looked back to Ope "I give you my thanks and the best of luck in our upcoming battle."

"Just doin' my job sir!" OpAe grunted before making his way to the center of the ship "START ROWING!" he bellowed as a couple of pirated brought the sails back up so that the crews could row the final stretch to Maroon Island.

The docks were now in clear site, Appatus was disappointed that there was no other place to leave the ships but he assumed that was the reason Maroon Island was chosen to be the home of West Blue's most secure prison.

"A little more on the right!" Ope ordered the pirates as they turned the ship so that the side would be within jumping distance of the docks. "THERE!" He bellowed at last, giving Antil the cue to jump across and tie the ship to the dock.

"Everyone out!" Antil commanded the men in a voice just loud enough for everyone to hear as he scanned the area. Sorus seemed to have been successful in his attempts to create a diversion, the men stationed at the docks most have been shifted to the front gates so more guards could deal with the prison break at hand.

It was at this point that Appatus jumped to the front of his crew with surprising agility before motioning for the burning sun pirates to follow his charge. At the opposite dock, Bartree motioned for his crew to do the same, allowing two charging forces to merge at the base of the long and narrow hill that made Callahan such an impenetrable fortress. Appatus just hoped that the guards were still distracted enough so that the pirate alliance would be successful.

To Be Continued…

* * *

><p>AN: Hey! This one only took two weeks so hell yea! Anyways my current avatar is in fact the flag of the Burning Sun Pirates. So everyone tell me what your favorite parts/characters are in the fanfic right now. Anyways this will be a three parter so brace yourselves. Also review or I'll send Sorus after you!


	20. Sorus Chapter 3 part 2

DAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

By: Orrahn

A Special thanks to Oggytheogre321

Callahan Prison: Building A

From his current predicament, Timmadaius "Tim" Flanders could deduce that he was in fact a bit down on his luck. A day that had begun with him and his friends conning a tourist ended up with Tim himself being framed for the biggest scandal that his town had ever seen.

Flanders was the head of a crew of ruffians in Lillymoon city, though they were rather docile compared to the frequent pirate attacks that erupted after the death of Whitebeard. Tim's latest plans involved conning the tourists who were coming in to bet on the annual ferret games by charging them for "docking passes". Everything was moving so smoothly that even legendary Lillymoon conman "Silky Smooth" Gordon would be impressed. That of course was until they decided to bring their con up a notch and move to the VIP docks. Being aware of the heightened danger of being detected, the gang was extremely cautious. They had already made tons of profit when they tried to scam a certain ranked marine named Difetto, only to have the situation flipped on them and get blamed for rigging the annual ferret games.

"What a corrupt fella." Tim commented before a sudden barrage of sounds interrupted his flashback. The back wall of his cell had suddenly formed a sun shape before a series of pie like cuts that crossed each other at consistent angles and cut to the complete opposite side of the sun formed and fell apart into square-like chunks.

"What that!" a guard called out as he jogged to Tim's cell. "What is going on in-" he began before being cut off by a loud bang.

"Grab his keys" Lugh growled as smoke exited the tip of his pistol, it was time to get things rolling.

Sorus and the rest of his squad stepped into the cell. "What ya lookin at punk?" Sorus growled at the bald, dark-skinned man on the floor. "Stand up and grab the guard's keys and weapons, we are starting a little riot!"

"B-but I am just a c-conm-" Tim stammered before being interrupted by the scarlet-haired warrior.

"Does it look like I care what you are? Just grab the weapons and the keys!" Sorus roared in annoyance.

Tim gulped and reached out of the cell, they didn't bother to handcuff the prisoners in Building A since they were mostly in jail for non-violent acts and weren't particularly potent fighters. He grabbed the key ring off his waist and quickly singled out the key that he remembered the guard using for the cells in his section before fitting it into the keyhole and twisting. The cell door slid open and Tim quickly grabbed the weapons off the body of the barely-breathing man. "I can't even use these…" he stammered as he laid down a sword, a guard-club and two flintlock pistols on the floor.

"Just take one and give the rest to the next guys we free." Sorus growled as he grabbed the key ring and began to unlock all the nearby cells. In mere moments he had taken out two more guards and had gathered a whole squad of thieves, dirty businessmen and conmen around him. They were just about to start moving to the other segments of the ring like building when the alarms went off causing Sorus to grin fiendishly. It was time for Appatus to make his move.

Maroon Island: South Beach

"Umbrella thorn" Appatus announced with his pipe still in mouth as his spun his body like a fan at amazing speed, allowing his nails to cut up the four guards that surrounded him. He momentarily returned to the base stance of Savannah Seiken as the rest of the pirates caught up to him. He was currently half way up the hill and thanks to the darkness, the people up top hadn't spotted them yet to alert the rest of the fortress.

After blowing a couple of quick smoke rings, he began to run up the steep hill once more while simultaneously keeping the impacts of his feet as quiet as possible. Luckily enough, the four guards stationed at the midway point were the only ones at their post since the majority of the guards are scrambling to deal with the situation on the north wall. Appatus guessed that about twenty minutes had passed since the alarm went off which was just ahead of the horned navigator's schedule. Being early was something Appatus couldn't accept for he always had to be exactly on time and would not normally accept anything else.

Sudden blindness caused from a powerful flashlight halted Appatus's advancement "Halt this is the front gate to Callahan Prison, why have you abandoned your post?" One of the guards at the peak of the hill asked for he obviously did not yet realize that Appatus was no guard as of yet.

The navigator had already slowed to a walk since he wanted to be able to make it all the way up the hill before the whole facility knew of their presence and running would be the same as announcing that something is wrong. "My sincerest apologies, sir!" Appatus responded in the most polite manner possible as he moved ever closer to the guard while simultaneously hoping that the rest of the men would be slow enough for Appatus to close the distance between himself and the top of the hill. "I seem to have tripped and broken most all of my ribs! I think I should go see the doctor, sir!" Appatus pleaded in a most sincere fashion whilst squinting from the light still being aimed right at his face.

The audible crashing of feet on rubble echoed its way to the top of the before the guard could begin to reply. Total blackness momentarily enveloped Appatus as the flashlight was redirected to the scores of men behind him. "WE ARE UNDER ATTACK!" The man announced at the top of his lungs, causing guards to rush to the top of the hill with their guns ready.

The navigator was already on the move and closing the distance fast "Tamboti…" Appatus began to say in an unmistakably cool fashion with his teeth still clenched around his ever-present pipe. He then spread his fingers in a tiger-like fashion and began to land heavy blows across five different opponents, blood spraying as his nails pierced flesh "Barrage!"

A triumphant roar sounded as the rest of the pirates came to Appatus's aid. The forces led by Antil, Ope and Bartree stampeded into slashing distance just in time to avoid a full on execution by the rifle wielding guards. Even with an advantage as huge as higher, flatter ground, the guards did not stand a chance against such a surprise attack and were easily brushed aside.

Callahan Prison: Building D

Rippa Voit twitched awkwardly, the alarm had been going off for about 30 minutes now and was beginning to annoy him. This served to agitate him even further when he remembered that all was futile since every moveable part of his body was rendered entirely immobile by chains and cuffs. By this time, Voit managed to deduce that the alarm was no drill, but an actual attack on the prison. 'Who would possibly attack a fortress with a reputation like this?' He pondered to himself since he really did not have much else to do at the moment.

Danu Tiberius, on the other hand had a lot to do at the moment. "Everyone just calm down." He ordered his officers to calm them down, showing his years of experience as the warden of the prison. There had been many break out attempts over the years. Just one breakout that managed to free prisoners from building A not even coming close to penetrating the inner sanctums of the prison fortress known as the 'Stone Turtle'. The formidable obstacles between each ring saw to this and the warden was well aware of this. "Do they seem to be looking for a particular prisoner?" He asked thoughtfully.

"No sir!" One of the men in the control room responded as he looked at the den den Mushi feeds of the action in Building A "They seem to be freeing and arming everyone!"

"Hmm, they either already freed their target and the rest of the people are a diversion for the escape, or they plan on building an army and move inward. Can I get an identification of the leaders of the assault, both the diversion group and the main force?" The warden responded in his high-pitched, yet masculine voice.

"Yes sir!" The man responded as he pulled out a bounty poster of a blond haired man in a plaid golfer's hat with a thin goatee holding a pipe a couple of inches from his face and blowing a smoke ring. "This seems to be the only one we could find with a bounty, Appatus 'The Gazelle' has grand total of seven million belli on his head. Appatus is a pirate captain who seems to be leading the main force" The officer stated as he handed the picture to Tiberius.

"Seven million?" Tiberius asked with a grin on his face. "He has some nerve for such a pitiful bounty." The warden added with a sinister tone in his voice. While the bounty was higher than every one of the prisoners besides Voit, most bounty heads were either executed by the marines or held at Callahan only until a ship came to take them to Impel Down, Callahan's reputation spawned for more than just its physical defenses. "And what of the diversion squad? One of their leaders has to be among them." The warden inquired with his hand on the hilt of his sword.

There was a moment of silence as the two looked at the feeds of the northern half of Building A, inspecting each of the outlaws without prison uniforms on. "It has to be him!" the officer said pointing at the tattooed red-haired swordsman tearing through the guards.

Tiberius shook his head "Noooo that is just what they want you to think" he said, his words long and drawn out in an almost mocking fashion. The warden then pointed at the fat man dressed in purple and yellow clothes with a matching feathered hat who was currently at the back of the assault holding two pistols. "He is obviously the real ringleader! Look at how his mouth is moving, he's giving orders and encouragement to the men as they continue their ultimately futile assault!"

"Blah blah blah, are you just going to sit around and point or are you actually going to make an attempt to guard the fortress I managed to break into with such ease?" Alastir jeered as he hung upside down from the ceiling.

Tiberius grimaced at the words of the 'Royal Assassin', but he had a point. The warden grunted in disgust before walking across the room and picking up a den den Mushi "I want all of the prisoners in Building C transferred to Building B and enter turtle mode!" He began strategically.

"Yes sir!" A voice coming from Building C responded with enthusiasm before audibly shouting orders to the men under his command.

Tiberius hung up the snail and picked up another, this one connected to building B. "The prisoners in building C are currently on their way to you. Place them in the cells and activate the fontus system."

"Sir, yes sir!" A new voice responded as he too began to shout orders.

The warden then hung up that den den Mushi as well and returned to the screens while plucking his thin mustache. "We will see how our purple garbed friend fares against the true might of Callahan Prison!"

Callahan Prison: Building A

"TWIN STAR CUTTER!" Sorus roared, swinging both of his dual-bladed swords outward as he darted forward with the untamed ferocity that the crew had become to expect from Sorus. The three guards fell to the ground behind the savage warrior all at once with a single thud. Sorus grinned, gritted his teeth with a touch of insanity that reflected the madness that was displayed in his blood red eyes.

"Your moving way to fast… man" Marko moaned as his floppy shape came jogging up behind the rest of the group.

"Shut the hell up!" Sorus furiously growled "I am tired of your complaining! I swear you have complained more than fired your guns." Sorus continued, suddenly realizing the reality of his words, for Marko had not fired a single shot the entire battle, preferring instead to wave his two pistols around and complain.

"I told you that I forgot to bring ammo, just let me go back to the ship and get more… man" Marko whined which only served to increase Sorus's rage.

"YOU WHAT!" The red-haired warrior screamed as he slammed his fist against the wall so hard that it chipped a bit and caused his own hand to bleed. "WE ARE IN THE MIDDLE OF A PRISON BREAK, WE CAN'T GO BACK TO THE SHIP! WHY THE HELL DIDN'T YOU PICK A PISTOL OFF OF A DEFEATED GUARD!" Sorus yelled in his unrelenting fury.

Marko blinked as if something just occurred to him. Then, after a few moments, the fat wannabe pirate picked up two pistols off of the guards that his captain had just cut down. "Never thought of that… man"

A sudden noise interrupted Sorus before he had a chance to yell at Marko further, causing him to clench his sword in alarm. The pirate paused for a moment before slicing the door in front of him into several pieces. The room was oddly empty, Sorus expected guards to be at the east-side of the ring which also happened to contain the only door to the inner rings. At that exact moment, the body of a guard flew through the opposite door and crashed to the ground revealing Appatus and his forces standing in the doorway.

"DAHAHAHAHAHA" Sorus laughed maniacally as he saw his navigator "Good to see you in one piece!" He grinned with his savageness on full display.

Appatus slowly removed the pipe from his mouth and walked forward. He delicately blew a couple of smoke rings before he began to speak. "We even managed to acquire a number of new companions before we began the assault that your ploy allowed us to pull off beautifully." He said calmly as he motioned towards Bartree who stepped forward.

"Pleasure to meet you Sorus!" Bartree said with a smile "I'm Stughorn Bartree, the first-mate of the Spiral Pirate Crew. We came here to free our captain Weldo!" He said to the resounding noise of his crew which sounded like a mixture between crying and cheering.

Instead of replying to Bartree which would have been awkward for him, Sorus turned towards his men and screamed. "IS ANYONE HERE NAMED WELDO!" He roared, sounding more menacing than helpful. After none of the prisoners responded in affirmative, Sorus turned back to Bartree who looked a bit shocked at the pirate's personality "Quit looking so scared." Sorus growled "Well let's get the hell outta here!" He growled as he kicked the door that led deeper into the ringed-fortress and stepped onto grass.

Callahan Prison: Between Buildings A and B

"DAMMIT!" Sorus growled in frustration, his red eyes so intense that they seem to pulse with the beat of his heart.

"Looks like this is more of a predicament than we first expected," Appatus added as he came up next to his captain and blew a few smoke rings.

When they first saw the fortress that evening, the distance and darkness made the crew assume that the land Callahan Prison was built on was flat. This was not the case, the truth was that the island was originally a mountain at sea with the various buildings built on three separate man-made terraces of increasing elevation. The first terrace included building A, and the short stretch of flat land leading up to it. The rest of the buildings were also on flat terraces with steep hills separating them.

Sorus and crew, however, couldn't care less about the other buildings at the moment since they had their hands full trying to climb the steep hill before them using only a couple of lights to guide the two hundred or so pirates. Hill climbing ended up being the least of their worries when all hell broke loose. First was lightning in the form of dozens of spotlights that suddenly lit up and blinded the army, next the air was filled with the thundering sounds of repeated gunfire.

Being momentarily blinded, having no cover, and an elevation disadvantage hardly worked in the crew's favor as bullets tore into their bodies from the top of the hill. "SON OF A-" Sorus began before he himself took a bullet in the shoulder. Ignoring the blood gushing down his arm, Sorus grabbed his blades and began to spin them in front of him to form a shield as he charged up the hill.

Sorus let loose a savage war cry as bullets bounced off his blades and shot off in random directions. This method, of course was not the best for his crew's safety, but Sorus had to make it up to the top of the hill or they all might as well just sail away. Looking beside him he saw Appatus fly by him, bullets nicked off bits of his flesh as he gracefully strode by. Much, to Sorus's surprise, Appatus was not the only one brave enough to make the charge, Ope was a few strides behind Sorus, growling as a bullet hit him.

Sorus was even more startled when the entirety of the Spiral Pirates, having regained their vision let out an erupting shout for their captain and made the charge as well. The excitement was not over yet as Tarz, Trapper and even a couple of other random crew members lent their own bodies to the effort and began to slowly make their way up the hill, trying their best to ignore the gunfire.

Sorus's smirk that was a combination of satisfaction and his normal unbridled fury turned into a full on grin when two of the spot lights suddenly shattered. Antil and a group of riflemen were doing everything they possibly could do to aid the charge. Thanks to the light becoming much less intense, Sorus could now clearly see what he was up against. The walls of building B were much more heavily fortified than he anticipated with only small slits in the stone for the riflemen to stick their guns through and fire.

Sorus let loose a second war cry, he was now within a twenty yards of the target, and bullets were now beginning to penetrate his unprotected lower legs, but he was not about to give up just yet. Appatus had already arrived and had begun yanking guns from the slits in the wall to reduce the enemy's firepower. This was just what Sorus needed to make it up the final stretch of hill and onto the chunk of flat land that preceded the second ring.

Still running, Sorus could clearly see that the guns his navigator was pulling out were unusually long, meaning that the walls must have been much thicker than the last. Sorus couldn't care less about this though, his 'Brown Dwarf' attack cut through the last ring, and now he even had a long running start and built up rage to strengthen his attack even further, he was going to crash right through the wall no matter what. "BURNING SUN STYLE: SPECIAL TECHNIQUE!" He began as he crossed and uncrossed his wrists with ridiculous speed, sparks flying as his blades smoothly glanced off each other without slowing down in the slightest.

He was now only a couple of paces away when he caught his second wind and lept off the ground towards the wall with his full strength "RED DWARF!" The savage pirate roared as he made full on impact with the wall, his blades cutting the same shape in this wall as the last. The wall busted apart to reveal the reason the wall managed to be so thick was that they had built two equally thick layers. Sorus's momentum had not stopped, however and he tore through the second with much the same ease as the last and kept flying forward until the steel bars of the cells on the opposite wall of the building were kind enough to send his weapons(and a couple of teeth) flying and his face imprinted. "DAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" Sorus laughed madly as he stood up and looked upon on the shocked faces of guards around him.

"GET HIM!" The commanding officer shouted, his troops pulling out swords and guns at their leader's commands. "YOU TOO NATE!" He shouted at a guard that was still staring at the wreckage in shock.

"DAHAHAHAHAHA" Sorus continued to laugh with his head thrown back in his insanity, the blood red veins in his eyes pulsing to the beat of his laugh.

The guards seemed slightly unnerved at this but continued to close in on the mad captain. "Umbrella Thorn!" Came a calm voice followed by the scream of guards falling to the ground with fresh cuts on their chest. Appatus, Ope, Bartree, Trapper, Tarz and a few others had arrived in the building, their numbers less than half of who originally made the charge up the hill.

The advantages that the guards had in numbers were quickly diminished thanks to the advantage of surprise. The men, aside from Appatus fought with a passion and intensity that surprised Sorus as he bent over to grab his swords before walking over to the whole he had made in the wall. "THEIR DEFENSES HAVE FAILED, GET UP HERE!"

The forces that did not brave the mad charge cheered in response, a number of troops even came out of Building A and managed to take cover in the chaos. When Antil and the much diminished forces arrived, he reported their current situation to Sorus "I am astonished that not a single man deserted, even the low-security prisoners decided to stay."

Tim Flanders grinned proudly at Antil's statement as he nursed a bullet wound on his left arm. The majority of the original forces had fallen in the chaos, it was only because of the mad charge that Sorus, Appatus, and a couple others had made that the rest managed to survive at all.

Sorus grimaced at the remaining pirates and prisoners, trying to find something to get pissed off at only to end up turning back around in disappointment. "Come on" he growled, we can replenish our troops in here." He continued as he stomped back into the second building, somewhat disappointed.

Callahan Prison: Building B

"WHAT!" Sorus roared, having finally found something to vent his rage on.

Appatus slowly took another puff from his pipe, taking about half a minute to blow smoke rings before responding. "We searched the whole building, all the prisoners have been removed, we are going to have problems taking the next building let alone making it over there if they fire at us like last time."

"DAMMIT, WHERE THE HELL COULD THEY HAVE GONE!" Sorus screamed in rage. He was currently in Building B's control room with Appatus, Ope, Antil, Tarz, Trapper, Bartree, Marko and Vince while the remaining pirates cared to their wounds with supplies from the infirmary.

Appatus took a long time smoking once more before replying "I am guessing that whoever is in charge saw what we were doing and moved them all the next building."

Sorus growled again but was interrupted by the door bursting open before he had a chance to respond. It was one of the scouts Appatus had sent out to see if the hill to the next building would be as deadly as the last. The man was young with stringy orange "We have an issue, sir!" he said breathing heavily "You might want to come with me and see this!" The scout panted.

Appatus blew a couple of smoke rings before replying "Thank you for your efforts, I shall accompany you immediately." He said in a dignified tone before the scout led him away.

Appatus barely had a chance to shut the door when a noise caused Marko to fall from his chair. "Gerogero Gerogero" came the sound.

After a brief moment of annoyance where Sorus had smashed his chair against a wall, Trapper found the source of the sound. "Here it is!" He said as he pointed at a den den Mushi with a carefully trimmed thin mustache in the corner of the room.

Sorus swiped the Den Den Mushi off its dock and yelled into it "SHUT THE HELL UP!" He roared in his annoyed fury.

"Now now, don't get so hostile, I just want to talk" responded a high pitched, yet masculine voice. "This is Danu Tiberius, I am the warden of this prison."

"What the hell do you want!" Sorus responded in a tone that sounded much more like a threat than a question.

The snail sighed as it repeated the gesture it received telepathically from the snail that Tiberius was currently holding. "My my, what is with the hostilities?" he responded, also managing to make a question sound like a threat. "I will take it that you are the purple clad leader of the fools who tried to invade us?"

Sorus's eyes turned red once more "Purple? What the hell are you talking about!" he responded in a furious tone that made the whole room tense up.

"Don't play shy now, I have looked at the surveillance videos and a man in purple silk and a purple hat with a yellow feather poking out of it was obviously giving orders." Responded the voice in its normal, sinister fashion.

"Yo, I think he's talking about Marko" Vince pitched in as he looked over to his friend who was struggling to push himself back up to his feet after falling down earlier. Marko was not a man of great upper body strength.

Sorus gripped the receiver even tighter in response to this realization. He took a brief moment to breath before shaking the whole room in his rage "THE NAME IS KIDAROU SORUS, CAPTAIN OF THE BURNING SUN PIRATES DAMN YOU!" He screamed before shattering the receiver in his anger and throwing the snail back at its dock.

There was a moment of awkward silence that was extended even further when Appatus opened the door and stood silently as he took a puff from his pipe and slowly blew a couple of smoker rings. "You should probably come with me and see this." He finally said, breaking the several minutes of no sound that had followed the outburst.

The tattooed captain snarled for a brief moment before stomping after his navigator. The two traveled to a ladder between two empty cells that led to the roof. Appatus climbed up first, closely followed by Sorus.

A hot wind blew across Sorus's bare back when he reached the roof. It was completely dark. "The main control room must have cut off our exterior lighting" Appatus explained after blowing a couple smoke rings "But look" he said as he flashed a light to where the hill should have been only to reveal a smooth glassy surface that Sorus instantly recognized as water. "It gets worse" He continued as he pointed the light at the scout from earlier who was now holding a bloody rag over where his right forearm had been "There are sharks and there doesn't seem to be any controls to turn it off from here. If there is any way to drain it without going into the next building, I bet it is underwater." Appatus explained.

After a moment of silence, Sorus busted into mad laughter "DAHAHAHAHAHAAHA! That's it!" The mad captain laughed as pulled out one of his double-swords and broke it in two. "Just stay here, there has to be a drain somewhere right?" He grinned savagely, water splashing everywhere as the savage captain dove in head first.

To Be Continued…

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><p>An: 100,000 words!

Wow, so long time no update, and here I was planning on updating four times in December so that I could move on to Brizan. Well anyways, I will try to update as soon as possible with college starting back up so keep your eyes open.

Anyways, Whale and Kaira are working on their chapters too so we got those chaps coming for you. Thanks for the support and don't forget to review.


	21. Sorus Chapter 3 part 3

Mmmm Sharks!

Callahan Prison: Building D

Danu Tiberius briskly walked into the briefing room of the prison where all of the officers of the prison were already waiting for their leader.

"Bout time you showed up!" A big brute of a man grunted, the top half of his enormous stomach was lazily flopped on top of the table. The man was mostly bald on the top of his head with several ugly and distinguishing marks on the flesh. The bald part of his head was surrounded on three sides by a dark grey crown of his remaining hair. In terms of facial hair, he had puffed out sideburns that trailed down his face, eventually merging with his mustache. Sadly, his chin was clean shaven, providing no blockage for the constant stream of drool that poured out of the left corner of his perpetually open mouth.

In terms of clothes, the ten foot tall man wore a more casual version of the basic dark grey uniform that the guards wore. This consisted of bare feet and shorts that exposed his bushy legs. He also wore a dark grey short-sleeved shirt that was mostly covered by a large stained apron which showed his position as head chef of the prison.

Directly next to the chef was a meat tenderizer so immense that there was no way any chef could expect to use the tool for its intended purpose. No, this tenderizer was at least ten feet long causing the pyramid-shaped spikes on the square mallet head to look much better suited for smashing bones into powder than softening steaks. The chef then slapped one of his huge meaty hands onto the tenderizer with a loud pop as he awaited his boss's response impatiently.

"Ah, you seem to be quite tense Mr. Hestio, let me help you with that." A tiny man with a bushy gray mustache and a monocle over his left eye offered the chef as he light tapped the bottom of a large syringe he was holding, causing a tiny amount of orange liquid to squirt onto the table. This man was barely five foot tall and wore a set of black scrubs that matched the prison's theme. He also had a small round hat with a red cross on it resting on his head to symbolize his position as head of the Callahan Prison Infirmary. Resting on the table in front of the man was a large, elongated suitcase that had to have been used for more than just medical supplies.

"Get your trash medicine out of my face, when was the last time someone came out of the infirmary in better condition than they entered?" Hestio growled as he smacked the giant tenderizer again.

"Well thankfully you don't cook the employee meals or we would all be dead for sure feh keh keh" A fat woman at the table began to laugh before bursting into a fit of coughs followed by a loud burp. The woman must have been one of the ugliest people on the face of the planet with Hestio the chef right behind her. The lady had tangled black hair that fell around the same length down all sides except for the front. Her face had several hairy warts and her nose was shaped like a piece of garlic.

This woman had a slightly modified prison uniform that included a different style of gloves that better fit her role as head janitor of the prison. The janitor was around seven feet tall and almost as fat. Behind her particular seat was a large dolly that seemed to be what she did _with_ her job with though the strange noises coming from would cause the world's janitors to raise a few eyebrows.

Warden Tiberius grimaced in annoyance at the bickering of his subordinates. "All right, all right, settle down." Danu said with a rather bitter sigh that immediately grasped the attention of all three of his officers. Recognizing that their attention was held, Tiberius continued "Now that I have the attention of you inconsiderate brutes, let me tell you why I have called you here."

Hestio grunted smugly, his large throat visibly jiggling under the force of the gesture "Is it cuz your defenses are useless?" He asked as he leaned back in his chair. With his weight, this would have normally resulted in him falling back onto his head, but thankfully the fat from his massive gut had molded around the table and kept him in place.

"Hey now Hestio, it's not his fault that the guards are so weak feh keh keh." The woman laughed as she slapped her grubby hands repeatedly onto the table like she told some sort of clever joke.

"Ah, but wouldn't that in fact make it Mr. Tiberius's fault?" said the head of the prison infirmary as he drummed his hands pleasantly on the table.

At this point, Tiberius was seething, his face red like he had sunburn, though it being just past midnight, this was not very likely. "Would you guys just shut UP!" He barked, his voice inflecting during the last word that sent chill up the spines of every person in the room. Once the warden's face returned to its usual, almost white tone, he continued to speak. "The Fontus system has the situation stalled, and if luck is with us they will turn around and leave right now… "The bald man began as he pulled a picture out of his pocket and slammed it on the table. The picture was of a fat man wearing purple clothes and a feathered hat pointing two pistols at the camera. "However, this Sorus character seems to be unreasonable beyond belief and I doubt they will leave so easily."

Before any of the people seated at the table could respond, however, a new voice resonated through the room, causing everyone to look up and see Alastir walking on the ceiling, holding the receiver of a Den Den Mushi to his mouth while the snail itself was stuck to his left forearm. "Yea, I will handle it until then. Yea man, catch ya later." Alastir said to the receiver shortly before placing it back on the snail's shell.

"Who the hell is this bloke!" Hestio bellowed as he pointed a massive finger at Alastir.

"I'll take it you do not read the news Mr. Hestio, or you would know that man was the 'Royal Assassin' of the Enforcer's Four." The head of the infirmary pitched in, causing the Hestio to let out a grunt as if he realized it was wisest to hold his tongue.

"Is that so Doque, he doesn't look that strong feh keh keh." The janitor lady responded with a sneer across her broad and ugly face.

"Stop your foolish bickering." The warden barked before addressing Alastir. "Unless, you have something important to say, leave, because we are trying to hold a meeting here."

Alastir simply smiled at the warden's annoyance "Relax, don't forget that I am here to help with the defenses." Alastir continued with a smile as he continued to hang from the ceiling without turning red in the face.

The warden grimaced at this response, he felt as if his pride was being insulted and could not stand it. "Well, considering that the member of the Enforcer's Four that they said that they'd send still hasn't shown up, I suppose that I will have to make due with you." Tiberius seethed.

"Well that's the thing" Alastir began "I called the Marine Base on Burboon Island where Gorboh is currently staying and informed him of the situation so that he can get here as soon as possible since this prison certainly does not live up to its reputation." Alastir thought he heard a slight hiss coming from the warden, but decided to ignore it and continue, "That base is busy trying to send support to Oion City which is currently dealing with a terrible fire at the hands of some crazy rookie named Oregano, but Gorboh expects that he will be able to get a ship in the next couple of hours."

A small smile curled along the corners of the warden's lips "It's a shame that these rebels do not even realize just how doomed they are." He said to himself before turning back to the table and speaking to his officers. "Terry Doque," he began as he turned to the small man with the monocle. "Prepare your forces and head to the southeast third of Building C."

Doque simply nodded at this, grabbed his briefcase and jumped down to the floor "I will do as you wish Mr. Tiberius." He said as he headed towards the door in a rather jovial manner.

The warden then turned towards his two remaining officers "Roxine, I will need you to take the Southwest and Hestio, you can get the north." The warden ordered, his voice high and teeming with an air of arrogance. "If I am right, they will send all their men across the water at once and use their weapons to climb the walls before the sharks eat them." He paused for a moment so that everyone could take in what he said. "The few men that do get across won't stand a chance against our strongest fighters!"

Callahan Prison: Between Buildings B and C

It only took Sorus a second with his eyes open for him to realize just how late it was. It must have been at least an hour past midnight and Appatus had warned against drawing the battle out into the next day for they could receive reinforcements anytime, though Sorus wasn't the type to take things slow to begin with. The captain quickly shoved his swords in his mouth and tied his signature towel around his waist; he didn't want it falling off if a shark attacked after all.

The red-haired swordsman barely had the chance to regain his grip on his swords when a sudden shift in the water caused Sorus to quickly paddle up with all his the power and skill he could muster. It had been maybe a second or two later when an immense shape grazed against his skin, swimming right through the spot where he was just moments earlier. A grin stretched across the pirates face. The shark thought that he had a meal just sitting around, but little did he know that he was the one who was marked.

Sorus was sure the shark was turning around up ahead and that it would make sure not to miss twice and the swordsman was thinking along the same lines, which would be worrisome for most people to think along the same lines as a bloodthirsty beast whose only thought was to tear him limb from limb, but that was just fine for Sorus. The swordsman raised his two blades and opened his eyes out of pure habit even though he knew it would be too dark to see. The shark was probably heading at him by now, but Sorus was not about to just sit and wait, the excitement was just too much to handle with his adrenaline pumping so Sorus kicked forward and angled his swords forward, ready to strike.

Sorus was suddenly jerked to the right as his left blade struck home into what he presumed was the side of the shark's head. Quick to react, the swordsman used the momentum to give the fish a powerful stab to the other side of the head with his right blade. The rough skin of the large fish scraped against Sorus's arm as it fought and squirmed till it no longer had the energy to do so. Satisfied that his opponent was defeated, the pirate yanked the sword in his right hand out of the beasts head before pushing his body to the left so that he could do the same for his other blade.

A succession of sharp pains like was being sawed on both sides of his arm simultaneously suddenly shot across the swordsman's left arm, causing him to drop the weapon in his right. 'SHIT!' Sorus thought to himself when he felt the sword slip from his fingers 'there is another!' he continued. The grip was tight, and Sorus knew that he could not afford to lose an arm, though that is exactly what would happen if he waited any longer. The swordsman, however, was not about to wait and let his dreams all slide into oblivion in that moment. No, this pirate had better things to do, so he turned towards his attacker, and in one glorious moment, the savage swordsman bit the bloodthirsty beast on its snout as hard as he could.

The grip loosened for just a moment, but that was all that Sorus needed to make his move. In one swift movement the savage swordsman tore his arm free and grabbed the second double sword from his back. The shark desperately lunged forward in an attempt to get another bite out of Sorus but it was just a bit too slow for the swordsman, now spinning blades were already descending upon the fish. The shark made one final frantic squirm as the blades sliced their ways through its skin, and then it went still.

The swordsman swiftly swam up to the surface. "APPATUS!" He shouted at the top of his lungs in an attempt to locate his navigator since he only had a couple of feet of visibility, even out of the water.

There was about twenty seconds of silence which Sorus set aside as the time it took for his navigator to smoke from his pipe. "Is that Sorus I hear?" Appatus's voice sounded. "What could I do for you on this fine night?"

Sorus paused for a moment and punched the wall of Building B in a poor attempt to stifle the rage he had built up from the combination of fighting and waiting for his navigator's response. "I'M GOING TO NEED YOU TO HELP ME FIND TWO OF MY BLADES AFTER I DRAIN THIS!" The red-haired savage shouted.

There was a pause before Appatus's response, but Sorus could care less because there was a giant fin just a couple feet from his body. Sorus acted fast, this one seemed to be slightly bigger than the last two, and Sorus was not about to risk a bite. Breaking his sword staff in two, the swordsman jabbed his blades into the wall, much like he did to scale the cliff that allowed this prison break to occur in the first place. The rock was tough, but Sorus managed to jab his weapons in just enough to support his body as he pulled himself out of the water and in one movement, flipped himself upside down. He did this not a moment too late either, for as soon as the swordsman flipped so that his head was facing the water, a large mouth filled with rows of viciously pointed teeth splashed its way out of the water where he was just moments earlier and then descended back into the dark water. Sorus didn't care about dwelling upon what had almost happened though, he was a man of action so he flipped forward and kicked his legs against the wall as hard as he could and launched himself and his weapons onto the back of the descending shark.

The shark turned violently once it realized that some crazy pirate was on his back, grabbing his fin. Sorus was himself though, and was not even about to let go. In fact, in the next few moments the crazed pirate flung his legs forward and wrapped them around the vicious predator and landed two heavy punches to its head. The shark shook spastically in a final attempt to get the crazy man off its back but it had taken far too much damage from the punches it received earlier and the swordsman was not about to let him get away. Sorus clicked his two blades together to form one of his sword staves and began to spin it in both hands at amazing speeds that most people would consider impossible underwater and then brought it down upon the shark's head in a single powerful swipe.

There was one more moment of struggle before Sorus kicked himself off of the fish's body and back up to the surface so that he could look around for any more fins. Once the savage pirate saw that the coast was clear for now, he swam to the bottom of the water with his swords out in front of him to help him search for any sort of drain. After a few minutes through which he became progressively more tired due to the loss of blood in his left arm from the shark bite, his sword struck something hard and round. The pirate quickly put away his blade and began to spin the large apparatus. There was a sudden shift of water flow as all the water surrounding the pirate got sucked through a hole that opened up next to the valve that he had just turned. The Fontus system, however, was far too immense to be drained by only one opening in such a short time frame.

'DAMNIT!' the pirate thought to himself in anger as he swung his blade at building C, not caring whether he would save the higher level prisoners or not, he just wanted to get through. The wall, however, was solid steel and was not about to give in to a measly blade. Sorus grimaced in rage and began to swim along the floor once more, hoping to find more drains along the way. Sorus was in luck and ran into two more drains on his way along the floor of the Fontus system. The waters draining had sped up a great deal by the time that the pirate entered the final quarter of the circular system in hopes of finding a fourth valve and maybe his two other swords. He was in luck when it came to the first of his two goals, and nearly ran head first into a hard metal valve due to the pirate's earlier injuries tiring him greatly. In fact, most normal men would be unconscious or dead by now, but not Sorus, as he still powered on and got a tight grip around the valve before turning it with all of his might.

There was a click and then water suddenly began to rush out of the system with intensity. The water shot down below the two thirds mark in seconds and was rapidly approaching the half full mark. It was at that moment that an immense shape brushed by him, causing chills to emanate from every part of the normally fiery warrior's body. This shark, if it was in fact a shark, must have been at least four times as big as the last shark he killed. Sorus turned and drew his weapon and broke it in two so that he could block a larger attack. The impact came like ten cannonballs as the beast's teeth smashed against Sorus's weapons in a spine-chilling crash. Sorus did not have nearly the strength at this point to resist the immense force of the shark and was pushed by his weapons all the way to the wall of building B.

Air shot out of the pirate's lungs as the shark drove the force of its body as hard as it could towards the wall, mouth wide open the whole time. Sorus desperately attempted to regain his breath against the weight of the shark when he realized that he was breathing through his mouth; his head was out of water! The savage swordsman looked down; the shark was the largest he had ever seen, he couldn't believe such a huge beast could exist. Sorus had his weapons spread to his full arm span and he was still only stopping the shark's mouth from closing by the tips of his blades.

The water continued to seep away so that the water was currently level with Sorus's chest, and as one could imagine, the shark's push had weakened greatly. Sorus seized the opportunity and slammed his feet against the wall and pushed with all his strength as he released a savage war cry. "" he screamed, the shark struggling against the swordsman's strength but the waning water level prevented the massive beast from summoning any great force and it eventually began to slide away.

Sorus now had enough room to stand comfortably on his own and slid his legs down the wall to find that the water now only reached his knees. The beast before him that was so powerful just moments before was now helplessly thrashing around in water now shallow enough to be considered a puddle for it. Sorus walked up to the beast and looked it directly in the eye before releasing another savage war cry and stabbing it. The red-haired swordsman was breathing heavily now as the water reached his ankles, the world was spinning and his head was pounding. The pirate fell to his knees and then his chest, his last attempt in pushing himself up merely resulting in finding himself on his back and looking up at a dark figure. A familiar scent emanated from the figure but he could not quite place it.

The figure paused for around ten seconds before speaking. "Ah, now this explains why we get along so well." A voice sounded shortly before everything went black.

About 20 minutes later: North Building C

Ope heard a loud scream to his right and looked to see a piece of a large door where some of his men had been. After a split second of inspection, Ope looked up to see that the door was in fact the very same door they were running towards to break down and in its place was a large figure holding a gigantic hammer-like weapon.

"Well well, what do we 'ave 'ere?" The brute of a man said as he slowly moved forward, a squad of about fifteen men in chef hats forming behind him. "Well the leader don't seem to be 'ere, are you second in command?" The man said as he pointed the handle of the giant weapon at Ope.

The more Ope looked at the weapon, the less the weapon looked like a hammer and the more it looked like an oversized version of the cooking utensil that he had seen chefs use to soften the fibers of steak. The warrior drew his two battle axes and took a couple of steps forward. Tarz drew his battle axe second and followed his brother forward, setting the example for the rest of the men. "If you're lookin' for our leaders, you'll just have ta settle for me." Ope growled "Those two are busy right now." He continued, thinking back to the unconscious Sorus that Appatus had brought back to Building C.

Appatus had found a former doctor among the Building A prisoners and got him to give Sorus a blood transfusion to get him back up to fighting condition for the final phase of the attack. The navigator then split the forces into three groups, each hosting about fifteen people so that they could attack all of Building C's entrances simultaneously. Once he had assigned leaders to the three groups, the navigator disappeared to handle some 'private matters', leaving much of the crew confused and angry.

Ope, however, had faith in his former captain and knew that whatever Appatus was doing, it was to help their advances. As he stepped closer to his massive opponent, the more he grinned. If he was going to lead the crew while the captain was unconscious, he might as well act as Sorus would. In the short time that Ope had served in the Burning Sun Pirates, the veteran warrior had learned tons that battle after battle could never teach him. Though a good fighter, it wasn't Sorus's fighting skill or experience that made him so strong, it was his fiery passion and undying will that accompanied every single strike of his blades. Ope had long since abandoned fighting through passion and emotion, but this new captain had opened his eyes, he may have been past his prime, but he was ready to fight until his last breath. "GET THEM!" he roared, leading the charge at his massive opponent.

Southeast Building C

Antil felt a tap on his shoulder as he moved forward towards Building C. He turned to see a man he recognized as a prisoner from Building A grinning back at him "Hi, I'm Timmadaius Flanders!" He said with a wide grin, his right hand reaching forward to shake Antil's "But you could call me Tim if ya want!"

Antil grabbed the man's hand and shook it. "The name is Antil" he responded, trying to hide his confusion. "Now, if you want to get off of this island, I suggest that you get back in position." Antil pleaded, hoping they hadn't been spotted during that nugatory exchange.

Timmadaius simply stared at Antil with a dubious expression on his face and grabbed Antil's hand once more "Hi, I'm Timmadaius Flanders!" He began "But you could call me Tim if ya want!" He said, his smile radiating the purest ignorant bliss that Antil had ever seen. It was as if he were seeing a much more peaceful world than Antil, perhaps one where the buildings were made of marshmallows and the grass was made of sunshine, happiness, and all that is good.

"The hell…" Antil muttered as he released Tim's hand, still remaining quite confused about what was going on but he knew this could not be this convict's normal demeanor. Antil turned around and began to move forward yet again; he could not afford to be distracted; Appatus and Sorus were counting on him.

"!" A voice moaned as if the speaker was inflicted with intense pain. "YOOOOOOOOOOOO YOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOH!" It continued, causing Antil to turn around yet again. This time it was Vince who was causing the commotion. The lanky swordsman was lying on the ground writhing in intense pain with Timmadaius standing over him and introducing himself as eagerly as he possibly could.

At this moment Lugh who was currently Antil's second in command, ran over to the commotion only to immediately be assaulted by Tim's friendly greetings. Panicking at the sudden barrage of benign blessings, Lugh had no other option but to bring his hand across his (friendly) attacker's face in one glorious backhanded slap. There was a momentary pause after Tim hit the ground where Lugh just stood where he was and stared at something on Timmadaius's leg. "Antil, I think I found the issue!" Lugh announced as he reached down and pull the object out of Tim's skin. "It looks like an empty syringe!"

"A syringe?" Antil questioned, moving towards his second-in-command with piqued curiosity. "What about Vince?" he continued as he motioned towards the man who still moaning and writhing in pain.

"Hey, I think he has one t-" Lugh began before suddenly collapsing to the ground with an empty syringe protruding from his neck.

"Dammit!" Antil cursed as he spun back towards Building C "We are under attack! Start moving!" he ordered as he began to run towards the base, looking for any signs of his attacker as he moved. Shapes began to appear as he moved closer to the door causing Antil to whip out his rifle and fire a shot. "You are the ones attacking us!" he shouted shortly before feeling a sharp pain in his neck.

"Sorry to disappoint," came a voice from above "but that's not entirely correct."

Southwest Building C

Calling Stughorn Bartree of the Salentor Island passionate would be an understatement. Tears cascaded down his angular face in an unrelenting torrent. Slowly with adept movement only capable of a man who had spent month's nay years by his best friend Weldo's side from their rough childhood on the streets of Salentor City up to the other week when Weldo decided he would find One Piece, Bartree released a reverberating whoop that shook the very foundations of the base before charging forward.

The rest of the squad followed their leader's example and charged forth with unbelievable emotion. Several of the men, Marko included were even crying with Bartree. "Welllllllllldoooooooooooo…..man" he yelled as the group ran all the way up the hill and straight through the door into the building.

"This was way too easy…" Trapper said with a tone of heightened suspicion in his voice. Trapper was the second-in-command of this particular squad and was determined to remain alert since the leader was a little bit "caught up" in the moment. His suspicions only got worse when they stepped into the main part of the building and there was a team of janitors busy mopping floors and polishing cell bars.

"WHERE IS WELDO!" Bartree shouted with unmatched intensity. A couple of the janitors stopped as the vast majority of the workers just went about their work as if nothing happened.

At this moment one of the escapees, a small-time thug nicknamed 'The Fetus', walked right up to one of the janitors who was busy mopping away next to his mop bucket and tapped him on the shoulder, "Hey mopman!" the thug began. "Our leader wants to know if there is a prisoner named Weldo h-"

'The Fetus' never got to finish that sentence because he was busy rolling around on the ground in pain. The seemingly innocent janitor had simply placed his mop in the bucket like anyone who has ever used a mop would if it was no longer wet and then whipped it back out and jabbed 'the fetus' right in the gut. The air was filled with a loud sizzling sound, but this was only for an instant because it was then drowned out by the thug's screaming. His clothes and skin had instantly melted away at anypart of his body that was touched by the wet mop.

This screaming was soon joined by second when a janitor next to the group who was polishing a cell's bars with a spray bottle and a rag when he spun around and sprayed one of the escapees in the eyes. At this moment, Trapper noticed that each cell was over crowded with the block B and C prisoners as they had been told, but instead of spreading out in the cell to make more room as one would expect, they all crowded in the back of the cell. They piled on top of each other, some even made pained noises every time a janitor sprayed a bar. "Everyone ready your weapons, these guys are the guards of this place!"

"Feh Keh Keh, like that would help you deal with my babies!" came a wheezing laugh from the far end of the hall. This laugh was followed by a sound that reminded Trapper of a cart or dolly wheels. The pirate's intuition ended up being dead on. The first thing the group saw was a giant steel dolly with a large brown plastic case. Trapper's initial guess was that there would be more acidic janitor supplies in the case, but this was soon overruled by the loud scratches and screeches that emanated from within the case.

"Shoot that case!" Trapper ordered his gunmen who quickly aimed their guns.

"Oh no you don't!" responded the voice from earlier, which could now be identified as that of a woman's. At this moment a grubby, wart covered hand with nails that were long and yellowed reached around the top of the case and pressed a button that caused it to open. In mere seconds, a legion a giant, furless, deformed, red-eyed rats enveloped the room.

"RAAAAAAAAATTTS…" Marko screamed as one of the red-eyed rodents lunged for his face. "...man"

To Be Continued…

* * *

><p>An: Happy March 3rd! Grandmaster Briz here with a vengeance. I don't really feel like writing a author's note, but what the hell. My loyal readers deserve more than just a good chapter, they need the ever-honorable me to acknowledge their presence and how important they are to the growth of AoFS. So this ones for you guys!

Ain't I a great person? Don't I just make every single one of you want to review? Especially you non reviewing readers who add this story on your alert or fav list but never talk. Yea I am talking to you Zane! Oh and you too *looks at list of peeps who faved story* 'Vaughnilla' ! Oh and the old reviewers who don't review anymore , do you actually think you can just stop review Lawtzie? Pfft the rest of you too! Don't make me send Sorus after you!

But seriously thanks for all the support,

With all the love and compassion that I am capable of mustering,

Grandmaster Briz :)

P.S. Next chap should be out tomorrow or next week or next month or next year... whatever you'll read and enjoy it no matter what :D


	22. Sorus Chapter 3 part 4

**Hey there, Oggytheogre321 here, faithful reviewer and current Beta for Sorus's crew! I am commenting solely to do some shameless advertising. (In a bid to find some new reviewers). Check out my One Piece New Nakama series – which you'll find on my profile. That's all. For now, read this lengthy (but awesome) chapter!**

The Laugh Strikes Back!

By: Orrahn

North of Building C

Hestio let out a gruff grunt as he approached the shimmering eye that lay between him and Ope on the, mostly, stone flooring that was installed with the Fontus system in mind. "Don't go falling apart on me, I hadn't even got da' chance to prop'rly gut ya yet." The giant chef growled as he stepped ever closer to the eye until he was directly behind it.

"Don't you dare, you fat sack of… meat." Ope growled in his own response, making sure to account for the giant meat tenderizer that his opponent wielded like a hammer.

"Oh, I dare." Hestio stated in response, his vein pulsating violently. Then, with an exaggerated movement, Hestio brought his foot down upon the orb of glass and crushed it into tiny bits and pieces.

Ope was overcome with an unbelievable amount of rage. That was his favorite glass eye, that helped display his favorite war wound, since nothing says "badass" like having to place a poorly colored glass eye in your skull to prevent people from gagging at your very presence. No, that eye he had taken from the very same man that gouged out his own eye back in the days when Ope was a mountain bandit. A chef suddenly came at him with a knife but he deftly backstepped and smacked the man with the flat of his axe so hard that his jaw may had ended up getting fused to the ground. Now overcome with fury from the combination of his own mistake in letting his eye get knocked out and at Hestio for crushing it, he let out a vicious war cry and lunged forward at his much larger opponent.

Tarz was fighting two chefs a couple of feet away from his elder brother and was quickly being backed up against a wall. He swung his axe wildly but more chefs were on the way and the warrior-pirate did not know how much longer he could hold out with his men falling all around him.

Hestio brought his meat tenderizer across horizontally with all his strength, forcing Ope to jump back to avoid the rather morbid fate of a slab of beef. Hestio was not about to let the warrior get within striking distance, not while he had so much more reach than him. Ope's foot hit something odd, causing him to look down and see the chef that he knocked unconscious earlier. A savage grin spread across Ope's face that would have easily made the poor chef on the ground soil himself, if he was conscious that is. No, this poor baker had no idea of the gruesome fate that Ope had prepared for him.

"Hey, tubs." Ope taunted as he lowered his stance and temporarily put away his weapons.

"Da names Hestio!" The head chef responded with a certain articulation in his manner of speaking that forced Ope to imagine the sheer gallons of spit that undoubtedly came out of his mouth every time he attempted to speak. Thankfully, however, it was far too dark outside for Ope to witness the cascading drool that almost always came out of this chef who was more troll than man.

"Yea, whatever." Ope responded as hoisted the unconscious chef onto his shoulders. "Hey, tubs… catch!" The grizzled warrior shouted shortly before launching the body at his opponent.

"Stupid…" Hestio grunted, his tenderizer making perfect contact with the chef causing the ragdoll-like body to be sent flying.

This was Ope's shot at an opening and he was already sprinting full speed at his target. His weapons were drawn; this was the only chance that he was going to get. The tenderizer had almost completed its full swing and would take a ridiculous amount of strength to swing the other direction without any kind of break.

"Oh no ya don't!" Hestio roared as he spotted what his opponent was plotting and attempted to counter with his weapon. All he succeeded in doing was having his arm wrapped around his own neck while the weight of his own weapon dragged it towards the ground. All Hestio had left to do was scream in agony when both of Ope's axes slashed their way across his torso.

Well, Ope at least thought that his opponent was finished, though the ogre begged to differ. Having given up on trying to lift the meat tenderizer from such an awkward position, the giant chef simply let go of it and seized the moment as a chance to counter attack Ope. The grizzled pirate had little hope of resistance as the bloody troll-chef wrapped his massive arms around Ope in a spleen-splitting bearhug, He held the position for moment, allowing an opportunity for his drool to find its way onto a disgusted and heavily pained Ope before sending him tumbling to the ground with a devastating headbutt.

Hestio took a couple of steps backwards and released a thundering roar as his chefs overwhelmed the remainder of the rebels. "Think ya can best da chefs of Callahan Prison, did ya!" He said to an overwhelming chorus of appraisal from his men.

Ope was on the brink of his consciousness; fighting as hard as he could to get to his feet. With a grunt he pushed himself to his knees, hoping that no one would hear him over the victory cries. He had to at least to defeat Hestio to make it easier for everyone else to clean up his mess. He reached for his weapons on the ground in front of him and used them to push himself back to his feet. Someone else pressed his back against his own; he looked to see that it was his brother.

"Still kicking, are ya?" Tarz grunted with a tired, but genuine grin.

"I could take two more waves of these weaklings." Ope responded with a laugh that was soon joined by his brother's own maniacal laughter.

"What's dis?" Hestio grunted "Ya still breathin'?" He added as he hefted his tenderizer off the ground and hobbled forward, making his way towards the two siblings. Hestio was only a couple of feet from striking distance when his eyes suddenly rolled to the back of his head and he fell to the ground, defeated.

There was a sudden roar that startled the chefs and caused them to spin around. "Reinforcements are here." Ope grunted shortly before passing out.

Southeast of Building C

Lights shined around the figure to reveal his true form. It was a tiny man with a bushy mustache and a monocle to match. The man was sitting on a small plank that protruded off of the roof of the building and was holding a strange gun with a large but currently empty compartment that he was loading a new, orange syringe into. "Allow me to introduce myself, good sir. The name is Terry Doque 'though people around here refer to me as the doctor. Nice to meet you!"

Before Antil could respond however, the lights turned towards him causing the beastly bright lights to leave him blinded and became a sitting duck for the syringe that so quickly pierced the skin right above his knee. There was a brief moment where Antil stood still in fearful anticipation which eventually transformed into confusion once he realized he was still standing. "I don't think your attack worked!" He shouted back to the head of the prison's infirmary ward.

Doque tugged on his mustache for a moment as he pondered the situation. "Ah, I've got it!" He said with bright enthusiasm that matched the lights that shined upon him once more. "That must have been regular water with orange food coloring!" he said with a finger in the air to signify his brilliance.

Antil froze for a moment as he loaded his own gun "Wait, why would you even load a gun with a syringe filled with water?" Antil asked, completely perplexed by his opponents motives, so perplexed that he did not notice that the rest of his troops were fighting a group of scalpel throwing ninjas back by a couple of doctor martial artists swinging reinforced stethoscopes around with remarkable precision.

Doque tugged at his mustache one more time before replying, "I had no clue, my dear friend, I was hired here as a doctor. They only made me head of the infirmary because I look intelligent and kind!" The false doctor blurted out with a torrent of enthusiasm as the lights once again turned towards Antil, leaving him stunned once more.

Antil made sure to dive on the ground this time, but the syringe was off target this time anyways. "AAAHH" a voice slightly behind scarred marksman shouted. "The pain… THE PAIN!"

Antil spun around and saw Lugh grabbing his head for a couple more moments before the veins popped to the surface of his forehead and began to throb violently. There were just a couple of more moments of intense pain before removing his hands from his head in a slow but dramatic fashion and charging at the enemy guards, his muscles visibly pulsating.

"Dang it! That must have been the super-steroid!" Doque swore as he reached to load another syringe but was startled by the sudden outburst from below as prisoners cascaded out of building C.

Antil knew that this was his chance and whipped his gun forward as his reinforcements backed up Lugh and the troops. Doque spotted this and threw down his gun and attempted to run back onto the roof. However, right before Antil could fire his rifle, Lugh punched one of the martial artists in the stomach as hard as he could which in turn caused him to launch the stethoscope across the field and into Antils back. "Ayyyyyyyyyyy!" He yelped in surprise that caused him to jerk his weapon up into the air and fire.

The false doctor was almost at the roof end of the plank when the gunshot rang through the air, but it was not quite far enough. Though the bullet was way off target, luck was on the side of the pirate when it made contact with the cable that suspended the already violently swinging lights and caused it to break clean. The lights came crashing onto the opposite end of the plank causing the tiny man to be catapulted away.

Building C: Southwest Block

They had been under attack for maybe ten seconds and Marko was already unconscious. In fact, he was on the ground and foaming at the mouth as soon as the first rat jumped at him.

Trapper on the other hand had completely disappeared from the scene, much to the rest of the crew's dismay. This left only the ever virile Bartree, who was putting up a valiant fight against his vermin adversaries.

"!" He yelled with the utmost vigor as he sent one of the enlarged boil-covered rodents flying with a glorious uppercut. He didn't even get a chance to recover before he got stabbed in the gut with an acidic mop. "YAAAAAAAAAAAAOOOOOOOOW!" he howled while he simultaneously cut the mop's shaft in half and followed through with a slash across the vicious janitor's chest.

However, Bartree's victory was short lived. All of his men were collapsed around him and the acid wound slowly crept across his torso like some sort of deforming infection. To make matters worse, Roxine was nowhere to be seen. His view of the head janitor had been completely engulfed by her vermin allies.

It was at this time that Bartree caught a blast of acidic spray on the right side of his face from a charging janitor. Before he even had a chance to retaliate a rat launched forward and bit his left arm. Bartree winced as he dropped his weapon in pain and fell to the ground, allowing the janitor an opportunity to prepare a finishing blow.

SLAM!

The rat was suddenly attached to a giant mouse trap and the janitor was suddenly sliced across the chest. Trapper had arrived "Sorry for being late," he said with the utmost swagger "I just had a feeling that I could find some materials to deal with these pests in the closets." He explained as he pulled out an arsenal of traps and poisons.

Rats were now dropping dead all around but even the rebels greatest efforts were proving to look more and more futile as more fell down until only Bartree and Trapper remained. "Damn, I thought we had them backed against the wall for sure." Trapper grumbled as he looked at the battlefield. There were only a couple of rodents and about four janitors left, but they were far too tired to continue.

"Feh keh keh." Came a wheezing laugh from the other end of the corridor. Roxine had reappeared; sitting inside her wheeled dolly and holding a large mop shaft with mop-heads on both sides that couldn't possibly have any practical use.

A searing pain flashed across both of the fighters bodies as the double-headed mop caught them both in the midsection while the head janitor rolled by them. "If only I was able to find the keys to these cells, we would be able to free the prisoners and get reinforcements." Trapper grumbled as he winced in pain.

"Don't worry about that now, because it's all over for you two feh keh keh!" The head janitor wheezed as she used one of her fat legs to turn the cart around and began to roll back towards the two remaining fighters.

The fighters saw the attack coming but could not do a thing to stop their imminent doom for they were far too injured to move out of the way.

"It's useless!" The janitor spat as she rolled ever closer to Bartree and Trapper with her mop angled to finish them off.

There was a sudden flash of movement and the shaft was sliced in two separate places, forming an 'X' shape across Roxine's body as blood sprayed outward. Appatus had suddenly appeared on the other side of her holding his hat with his left hand. He then slowly removed the pipe from his mouth to blow a couple of smoke rings before finally speaking the name of his attack. "Bushwillow Slicer." he announced in a calm monotone before replacing his pipe and whipping out a key to begin unlocking cell doors.

The prisoners were now flooding from their cells; the remaining janitors couldn't possibly hope to ward these numbers off with acid alone.

"Sorry for being late" Appatus said as he helped the two squad leaders to their feet, "I had to free the prisoners in the other two sections first." He explained his absence with the closest expression to a smirk that he had ever allowed across his face. He placed the pipe back into his mouth and blew a couple more smoke rings before speaking once more. "Now, if you can move, follow me. We need to regroup."

Callahan Prison: Building D Control Room

Calling Danu Tiberius aggravated would be an understatement at this particular moment. "OUT OF MY WAY!" His shrill voice echoed across the small control room as he dragged one of his men out of his seat and onto the floor so that he could begin clicking a series of buttons.

"You really need to chill out." Alastir said with his usual apathetic voice that was beginning to push Tiberius to the brink of insanity.

A single vein was now visible on the warden's forehead "Do not tell me to chill when we are only an hour away from 'The Fat Monk' and reinforcements arriving!" Tiberius seethed. "I am not about to let myself be defeated so easily!" He continued pressing buttons which eventually caused a loud grinding noise to be heard outside of the base.

"Another obstacle?" Alastir yawned, "So boring, I thought you were supposed to be a good fighter Tiberius…" He said with the utmost disrespect to the warden.

Tiberius's vein began to pulsate as he briskly walked over to the Den Den Mushi and placed a picture on the scanner "Just because I'm strong doesn't mean that I am conceited enough to think that I can beat all those prisoner's on my own." He retorted before picking up the receiver "Hello, is this HQ? Yes this is Warden Danu Tiberius of Callahan Prison in the West Blue. I need to report a crime…"

Callahan Prison: Building C

"How long do you think he'll take to wake up?" A recently freed prisoner asked anxiously.

"If he doesn't wake up soon, I say we take the ships and leave! We have the numbers anyways!" Another recently freed prisoner replied.

"Yea!" retorted another "Why should we have to risk our lives and go deeper into the prison? I don't want to die!"

"That is only because you never saw the man in action," Replied a prisoner from Building A. "If he is on his feet, there isn't a man on this island who could take him!"

"I don't care how strong he is, I just want to leave, so help us take the ships. They can't stop our numbers!"

Appatus suddenly appeared next to this particular prisoner and blew a couple of smoke rings while a bead of sweat rolled down the prisoner's forehead. "I am sure that you would find us most formidable as adversaries." Appatus said with a calm voice with only a touch of threatening undertone. "Don't take your chances."

Appatus replaced the pipe and blew a couple more smoke rings before turning to the rest of the room. "They withdrew the bridges to the final building," the navigator began to explain "I doubt the majority of the people in here could jump a twenty foot gap." He added to see the entire room shaking their heads to confirm his assumption. "Oh well, you guys can head back to the shi-"

Before Appatus could finish his sentence, a large portion of the outer wall was blown away. The captain had arrived. "DAHAHAHAHA!" Sorus laughed as he entered the room looking healthy and wearing his towel and second sword once more only to stumble and fall after only a couple of steps.

"Careful captain" Trapper warned "You are going to be lightheaded for a little bit after losing so much blood."

"Who cares, that won't stop me" Sorus grunted in defiance as he spotted Appatus. "What are we waiting for? Lets free that damn prisoner!" He growled, completely unaware of the situation at hand.

Appatus blew a couple of smoke rings before responding. "They have removed the bridges that lead over the gap to the last bit of the island; none of the men can make such a jump. I was just about to tell them to head back and prepare the ships for a speedy getaway."

"How far across is the gap?" Sorus growled, not really caring about what the men would do.

"About thirty feet. I could probably jump it. " Appatus responded after smoking a tad more.

"Me too," The red-haired savage replied "Now what the hell are we waiting for?" He asked as he looked at the plethora of dumbstruck looks he was getting all around the room. "What are you guys looking at? Get the hell out of here and get that ship ready!" The captain ordered with such intensity that even the skeptic prisoners were completely ready to follow his orders without hesitation. Just before the room had completely emptied, Sorus spotted Bartree and remembered something "WAIT!" He screamed, causing everyone to momentarily return to the room. "ARE ANY OF YOU WELDO?" He asked; only to be answered by total silence.

"He must have just gone drinking or something…" One of the Spiral Pirates guessed.

"He must have… I just assumed that he got captured since he didn't come back by morning." Agreed Bartree in a defeated monotone.

Back outside, the sky was now the faintest of a pink-purple with the moon still high in the sky. It must have been past five in the morning. Appatus blew a couple of smoke rings as he gazed out before him across the thirty foot gap they had to jump. "Ready? The navigator asked his captain.

"Stop the damn yammerin' and let's do this!" came Sorus's response as the two began to run towards the dark tower that was Building D. The two picked up speed with every step and Sorus drew a single double-bladed sword from his back and split it in two.

Appatus reached the gap first and cleared it with a single graceful bound that gave even such a daunting feat a feeling that he had accomplished it with ease.

"DAHAHAHAHA!" Sorus laughed as he launched himself through the air in the most aggressively feisty manner possible. Sorus barely even made it three quarters of the way across the gap before he began to fall. Thankfully, he had his swords on him to stab into the rocks once he got close enough so that he could quickly tear his way up the wall and join his first mate on the other side.

Callahan Prison: Building D Control Room

Tiberius slammed down the receiver as he finished his call and looked up at the surveillance feeds. Two men had now arrived, neither of which matched the image that he had just sent the base. "How the hell did they get over here?" He hissed as he grabbed the shoulder of one of the control room officers.

The wan winced from the piercing pain caused by his master's fingers digging into his shoulder muscles. "They jumped sir." He gasped in desperation, hoping that the warden would let go once he got his answer.

The man's hopes were shattered when the pain only got worse; the warden was now leaning over his officer in an attempt to get a better look at the men. "Neither of those are Sorus, is that bastard too much of a coward to face me himself!" He seethed as he finally released his now crippled officer and stormed out of the control room with his hand on his hilt.

Callahan Prison: Outside of Building D

The guard charged at Appatus as fast as he could only to find himself standing over a several hundred foot drop into the ocean. "…" The man screamed as he fell down the gap only to be encored by a faint splash.

"IT HAS A BOTTOM!" Sorus yelled in a fashion that made it seem as if he was actually surprised that the trench did in fact have a bottom even though it was not visible in the darkness.

Appatus ignored his captain and blew a couple of smoke rings. "We best be on guard, I hear the warden is a capable fighter." Appatus warned his captain knowing full well that Sorus would not heed his warning.

Sorus did not even get the chance to ignore his navigator for he was already under attack by a bald man with a thin mustache and a thin black blade.

"Well, well," said Tiberius as he twirled his mustache "I must say I expected Sorus to come to face me himself!" The warden said as he parried one of the pirate's blows and lunged forward.

Sorus quickly drew his second set of blades and knocked the warden's blade aside with his swords. His face twitched in complete irritation; nothing could have possible made him angrier at the moment than not being recognized for his deeds. "I AM SORUS!" Sorus roared as he reared back with his left arm. "BURNING METEOR!" He screamed while his right arm snapped forward and launched his weapon through the air at incredible speed.

Tiberius easily ducked the predictable attack. "What do you mean your Sor-" He began to ask but was cut off by an assault from Appatus before he could finish.

Appatus came forward with his left arm, forcing the warden to take a step back. The navigator used this time to remove his pipe and blow a couple of smoke rings. "Hurry up and go forward captain, we have spent far too long on this island already." Appatus explained before placing the pipe back into his mouth and putting Tiberius on the defensive with a vicious Manketti Barrage.

Sorus let out a very dissatisfied grunt as he ran to retrieve the swords that had buried themselves in the wall of the building. The pirate stopped as if he were about to say something but could not quite figure out what to say. Having given up, the pirate simply charged forward into the building.

"Better say goodbye to your friend." The warden said with a smug air of someone who knew something that his opponent did not. "It doesn't matter how strong you think he is; he can't compare with one of the Enforcer's Four."

Callahan Prison: Building D Control Room

"I ASKED YOU WHERE THE HELL THE PRISONER WAS!" Sorus screamed while spitting all over the face of the man he was currently holding by the throat. Upon realizing that the man would never be able to respond when he could not breathe, he lowered the grip to the collar of the officer's uniform. "WHERE IS HE?" Sorus repeated in a most demanding fashion

The officer, who happened to be the same man who nearly had a large chunk of his shoulder flesh removed by the iron grip that the warden had on him earlier, took this chance to gasp for breath. Once he had taken several very short breaths he attempted to answer the fierce pirate. "H-he….. is …..duh…downstairs." The officer sputtered only be thrown to the ground and knocked unconscious.

"Hey," Sorus growled to get the entire room's undivided attention. "Is he lying to me?" The pirate inquired in a most menacing tone. A room full of heads nodded in affirmative, leaving the pirate disappointed that he did not get to beat the truth out of them so he simply left and headed for the spiral staircase that led to the lower dungeons.

Sorus began to walk down the staircase with frustration that he passed up the opportunity to fight the warden. It was not like him to pass up an opportunity with a potentially strong opponent no matter what the excuse. Sorus did not have to be disappointed for very long as a pair of eyes were already set on him with vicious killing intent.

Sorus drew one of his double-blade's up with lightning speed on a sudden instinct that he was under attack. Sorus barely had the time to figure out that the enemy was above him before their blades had clashed. "Who the hell are you?" Sorus growled as a vicious grin began to spread across his face.

Alastir simply smiled in response, the step-light of the dungeon staircase illuminating his face.

Callahan Prison: Outside of Building D

To an onlooker, they would simply say that the battle was a blur. The two combatants had yet to land a single hit on their opponents as each fighter was of the more nimble variety. The battle was so intense that Appatus did not even have the time to remove his pipe and slowly state his attack names. No, this time was different, this time he had to speak with his pipe still in his mouth or not say his attack names at all.

"Tamboti Barrage!" Appatus muttered, obviously siding with the former of his two choices. For he might as well not use the attacks at all if he wasn't going to say the name with all the power his heart, mind and liver could muster. He then spread his fingers slightly and advanced with a series of much heavier but slower blows than that of the Manketti Barrage.

"Hmm, why attack slower when I had little trouble dodging the faster version of that attack?" The prison's warden inquired. The warden was right that Appatus's attack choice was rather odd, though what he failed to notice was that the force of the slower attacks were doing. Tiberius was not advancing on his opponent to launch his own offensive, but was instead backing up towards a wall. The warden's former smugness was replaced by desperation when his left heel struck the stone wall of the building. Having realized his folly, the warden attacked Appatus with a quick horizontal slash from his sword.

The artistic navigator managed to duck the blade just in time to learn that it was a diversion for the foot that just got planted in his gut causing him to spit out his pipe and stumble back several feet, coughing and gasping for air.

"Lunge Noir!" The warden said as he lunged forward with amazing speed, aiming the tip of his blade right below his opponent's ribs.

Appatus was still coughing and didn't have the oxygen in him to leap to the side, so instead he simply dropped in a desperate attempt to avoid being impaled. His desperation move worked, but just barely for the sword caught Appatus's hat and tore it from his head to reveal his horns. Tiberius simple stared at Appatus for several moments, giving him ample time to go and pick up his pipe and blow a couple of smoke rings.

"W-what are you?" The warden asked with a rather disgusted look on his face.

Callahan Prison: Building D Spiral Staircase

Sorus was definitely not in a good area for his fighting style. The spiral staircase was entirely enclosed with the stairs also doubling as ceiling the further the descent. Sorus also only had a couple of feet on each side for room, other than that he was completely enclosed.

Alastir, on the other hand was right at home in such a closed-in environment. The 'Royal Assassin' was very experienced on setting up battlefields that would benefit him the most and was not going to give Sorus a chance to use his full strength. Seizing the opportunity, Alastir jumped onto the wall to the right and charged at Sorus, his blade level with the pirate's throat.

Sorus ducked towards the right to avoid the attack and then tried to wrap his arms around his opponent and throw him to the ground, but he would not budge. "What the hell!" Sorus growled in frustration when Alastir's feet would not move, even though his body was completely horizontal. Sorus then tried to simply let go so he could draw one of his swords back out, but his arms seemed to be stuck to Alastir's clothing.

Alastir did not even give Sorus a chance to react and immediately stuck his sword to the wall. Next, he unstuck the majority of his arms and pushed off the wall full force with his legs, waiting until the last possible second before unsticking his feet. The Enforcer's Four member used his newfound momentum to spin around Sorus completely and stuck his hands to the pirate's back. Alastir let out a grunt as he kicked his opponent in the back as hard as he could and flipped back to the ground. Sorus was once more at the top of the Staircase.

"What the hell is up with your body!" Sorus howled, getting angrier by the second.

"Oh I forgot to introduce myself, didn't I?" Alastir asked with a strong air of sarcasm. "The name is Alastir of the Enforcer's Four and I ate the Nori Nori no mi, a Devil Fruit." The assassin said.

"A devil fruit?" Sorus spat, completely ignoring that he encountered yet another member of the Enforcer's Four. "You actually expect me to believe in those children's tales?" Sorus asked with a rather incredulous tone.

Alastir removed his sword from the wall and spread the fingers on his other hand, a strange pasty liquid dripped from it. He then rubbed his hand across the blade. "Oh they are more than just myths," Alastir said with a grin "I ate the Nori Nori no mi a long time ago and gained the power to produce a glue that can stick to anything. Once an object is stuck, only my will allows it to move again." He said with a smile.

"DAHAHAHAHA!" Sorus laughed as he began to sprint down the stairs at his opponent with two half double-swords spinning to make up for the lack of room. "I don't give a shit what you are!" He shouted with an air of pure excitement for the battle ahead.

Alastir had never faced such an impulsive opponent in his entire career. The assassin barely had a chance to stick his feet to the ground and bring his sword up to block the blade in Sorus's left hand. The blade stuck instantly, but the pirate did not care, he simply used his momentum to spin on his blade and bring the blade in his right arm around the man's guard. Alastir did not miss a beat for he expected Sorus to do this so he simply caught the arm holding the blade and made the hand stick so that the pirate would now be hanging in air.

What Alastir did not expect, however, was for Sorus to have the instincts of an animal and immediately bite into his arm. Momentarily panicked, Alastir unstuck everything he was pasted to only to be immediately kicked in the gut. The assassin fell back and attempted to catch himself, but Sorus was not about to let him do that. Sorus wrapped his arms around Alastir and kicked off of the wall, causing the pair to tumble all the way down the stone spiral staircase and onto ground level where Rippa Voit awaited them.

Callahan Prison: Outside of Building D

The two had continued to exchange blows for several minutes, neither managing to gain any more ground on the other. Tiberius took this moment to launch his offensive and stepped on Appatus's foot. Before he even had a chance to counter, the warden was already attacking him with a jagged-angled stab. "Negre Lance" He announced as Appatus made a sudden shift so that the blade would pierce his shoulder instead.

The navigator gritted his teeth around his pipe as metal tore through his flesh and then reared back for a follow-up. Appatus was not about to let the warden use such an attack again though. "Umbrella Thorn!" he muttered while he twisted his foot out from under Tiberius's and began to spin, his nails cutting into the warden while he tried to escape.

"Damn you! Ya stupid horned freak!" Rang the warden's high-pitched voice. Tiberius wiped the blood from his blade with a piece of his jacket as he stared his opponent down.

Appatus, on the other hand, took the moment of rest to blow a couple of smoke rings before speaking. "You should really keep your anger under control; it will only make you weaker." He replied as if he wasn't navigating for the angriest man in the west.

"Enough of this!" Tiberius hissed in fury as he drew his sword and prepared his final attack. "Black Requiem!" he screamed, his body dancing towards Appatus at incredible speed.

Appatus used the same moment to get into form for his ultimate attack as well. He lowered his stance and brought his hands together to form a spear-like shape. "Savannah Seiken: Secret Technique…" Appatus began as he reared back and launched forward with the speed of a gazelle.  
>"…Whistling Thorn" He concluded, suddenly on the opposite side of his opponent who had obtained a rather large slash across the chest and had fallen to the floor defeated.<p>

Appatus blew a couple of smoke rings before picking his hat up off the ground. "I am going to need to find someone who can patch this up."

Callahan Prison: Building D Dungeon

The lights flipped on upon the pair entering the room. Alastir stood up and dusted himself off. He then drew his second ornate katana to match his first now that he had room for two blades of such length. Each blade was identical: sparkling silver with a decorated green and gold hilt.

Though Alastir was turned towards Sorus, Sorus was facing the back of the room where Voit was still chained up. "So, you are the so called 'Rage King' are you?" Sorus inquired as he eyed the twelve foot colossus of a man. "You better be worth it." Sorus growled.

Voit's response was a simple grunt for he was not quite sure of what to say. He still was not sure why this guy was here or how the heck he even made it past all of the prison defenses and to the dungeon.

Before Sorus even had a shot to taunt Voit further, Alastir was coming at him with both blades extended as if they were metal wings and sliced inwards. "Falcon's Rise!" Alastir said in a snide tone.

Due to being distracted, Sorus was forced to act out of pure instinct and attempt to block with both of his swords. They were stuck on contact. The pirate let loose a grunt as he was kicked full force in the stomach, only for the foot to stick.

Alastir smiled and let go of one of his katana so that he could focus both hands on the other. "A Thousand Talons!" he said with a sly smile as he kicked off the ground with his free foot, freed the blade he was holding, grabbed and freed the second blade and stalled slightly before freeing his foot. The result was a cyclone of circular slashes to Sorus's torso. No one had ever stood up from this attack before.

Alastir turned towards Voit. "You know, I still have that solution that your ship's doctor gave me in case things got crazy on that mission we went on together. You wouldn't happen to want some would you?" The assassin grinned as he held up a needle filled with a reddish-tinted liquid.

Voit suddenly flashed back to his marine days where he was a widely respected officer and loved by his men. Unlike most marines, he never hated pirates; he merely brought justice to those who harmed the innocent. Those surely were simpler days than the current ones.

_About a year ago, a renowned scientist by the name of Gono Goldberg visited the West Blue in search of a test subject. He was performing an experiment that would greatly enhance the fighting power of the subject. It was originally selected that one of Voit's men would be the one to receive the treatment, but the man began to feel extremely nervous the day of the experiment. For this reason, Voit offered to take his place and had the procedure done to him on the spot. _

_Voit's body, however, was much bigger than his subordinate's, so Goldberg was forced to use the entire supply of serum including the original to stabilize Voit's bodily functions mid-experiment. Stabilizing was not enough though, so Voit never received the full treatment that he was supposed to. For this reason, the only way for him to unlock his true potential was through massive quantities of emotion._

_It was not long after this experiment that Voit unleashed his rage for the first time against a pirate crew that had wiped out a whole town. Though, scared at the moment, the marines thought little more of the incident since they would have received the death penalty anyways. Repeated occurrences, however, caused the marines to worry more and more and they eventually started to reduce Voit's responsibilities and eventually his rank. The worst was actually when two teenagers thought it would have been funny to perform experiments on his pet tadpole. Life in its youngest and purest form, simply extinguished, and Voit completely lost it after that. It took two whole crews of marines to bring him down after that and lock him up in Callahan._

"Keep that thing away from me!" Voit said with a heavy undertone of agitation mixed with fear in his voice. The syringe that Alastir was holding contained a solution that was tailor-made to stimulate Voit's emotions and make him go wild. Alastir had received it when he tagged along on a mission with Voit and his men a little less than a year ago.

"Chill man, I'm not stupid." Alastir said with a smile "Though I am pretty sure I could beat you even when you are like that." He added just to be extra smug. "It's a real shame I never got the chance to show that pirate that I had the keys to your chains." Alastir said as he held out a ring of silver keys. "He just didn't last as long as I expected him to."

"Shut your damn mouth!" Came a voice from behind Alastir that made him spin around, Sorus was back on his feet though bleeding heavily.

"Looks like I get to have a bit more fun after all." Alastir said with a smile while he pulled both of his blades to the same side and ran up the wall, onto the ceiling, and launched himself down upon Sorus with all his might. "Eagle's Dive!" He said as he swung his blades with amazing speed.

"DAHAHAHAHA!" Sorus laughed for no particular reason as he broke one of his swords along the hilt for two, easier to handle swords and blocked Alastir's attack. Alastir looked as if he was about to throw out a smug remark when the blades stuck, but never got the chance for Sorus was already charging straight forward and into a wall.

Callahan Prison: Building D Control Room

The Den Den Mushi began to ring as Appatus reclined in one of the control chairs and blew a couple of smoke rings. "Go ahead," Appatus said with a motion towards the receiver-snail, "Answer it." The control room officer, who was now long past his breaking point in abuse he could take in a single night, did as he was told.

"Callahan Prison, this is Control Room Officer Janniwok speaking." He said in a rather shaky tone.

"This is Ensign Huskins of the 23rd branch, the unit assigned to transport 'The Fat Monk' of the Enforcer's Four to your vicinity. Give me an update on the situation over there." An extremely nasally voice replied.

Janniwok passed a glance at Appatus who just gave him a pleasant look in return while he smoked from his pipe. "Th-The Situation has cleared, sir."

"Hmm, is that so?" Huskins asked in a rather skeptical voice. "Well, regardless of whether it is cleared or not, we will be there to pick up the prisoner within twenty minutes, make sure Warden Tiberius is informed." With a sharp sound, the Den Den Mushi on the other end was hung up, and not a moment too soon either. A loud sound had suddenly erupted from the dungeon.

Callahan Prison: Building D Dungeon

The worst possible event had occurred at the worst possible time and Sorus was pissed. It had taken about ten minutes for Sorus to match each key to its respective lock and untangle all the chains and cuffs that bound Voit to the wall. Sorus, as one could imagine, was swearing profusely the entire time.

Once Voit had finally been freed, the two began to head towards the stairway where things got worse. Much, much, worse. Alastir had regained consciousness in the ten minutes it took for Sorus to undo the chains and had jabbed the syringe carrying the solution into Voit's leg before his weakened and concussed state was sent flying by one of Voit's massive forearms.

Voit's attempts, however were far too late, for the solution had already been injected. "Get… back..." Voit gasped as he grasped at his head which was currently throbbing with each beat of his heart. His physical changes were miniscule, with the only very noticeable difference being how veiny and defined his muscles had suddenly became.

His personality, on the other hand, had morphed tremendously. This was best demonstrated when he threw Sorus up the first portion of stairs and into the wall. Sorus rolled onto his back and attempted to get up, but it was too late. Voit was already upon him and had one massive hand around his throat, jaw, and a little portion of the collar region where he was forced to lift his pinky since it could not wrap around the pirate's body.

Sorus was hoisted into the air with relative ease and brought up and out of the spiral staircase. Waiting on the other side were several barely conscious guards with a heavily bleeding Appatus holding his arm and watching from near the control room.

The brief pause after exiting the stairs was all the break Sorus needed to regain his senses. With one swift movement, Sorus reached his right hand over and grabbed Voit's wrist as hard as he possibly could. Sorus was staring directly into Voit's eyes "Put me down… now! Sorus grunted in the most intense voice would could possibly have while having their windpipe choked by a gorilla-man. "I am Kidarou Sorus, and as your new captain… I command you to let me down!" He repeated, his grip on Voit's wrist only getting tighter by the second.

There were several moments of intensity where Voit and Sorus held eye contact before Voit dropped him to the ground. The former marine then grabbed his head and cried out in agony for several moments before returning to his usual, passive demeanor.

Appatus was the first to speak, well, after blowing a couple of smoke rings of course. "Sorry captain, but we need to get out of here… now" He said as he placed the pipe back in his mouth. "Another member of the Enforcer's Four is about to arrive to escort Rippa Voit here to Impel Down. We have not succeeded in our mission just yet." Appatus said after blowing a couple smoke rings. "I took the liberty to lower the bridged for us so that we won't have to jump this time."

Callahan Prison: Outside Building A

The trio emerged from the front gates of the prison several minutes later. The three ended up getting held back for a couple of extra minutes to bandage up at the infirmary which seemed to have the bare minimum of required first aid supplies. Once Appatus and Sorus were not bleeding everywhere anymore, the three were able to move at a much faster pace.

Too bad a canon was already firing upon their ships by the time they made it down the hill. Appatus took a moment to blow a couple of smoke rings before saying what had to be done. "Everyone from Urlocher and my old crew needs to get on _The Bladed Fury_. Everyone else gets on the Spiral Pirate's ship." He said in his normal tone only for Sorus to repeat what he said so that the people would get the message as a cannonball landed in the water only inches from _The Bladed Fury_.

There were several moments of panicked shifting where several people fell overboard and had to be thrown back aboard the correct ship while more cannonballs landed around them, one of which knocked the figure head off of the Spiral Pirate's ship which happened to be a seal holding a ball between its flippers.

"Alright," Appatus finally said to Sorus. "Meet me on the island of Las Camp in two weeks' time and we will discuss our future plans as a crew." The navigator said as he stuck the pipe back into his mouth to smoke the last of his tobacco.

A vein popped in Sorus's forehead as he finally figured out what Appatus was doing. "WAI-" He began only to be knocked unconscious by means of a hand to the back of his head before being thrown to Voit.

"Now hop on board the ship of the Spiral Pirates and let us part ways for the time being." Appatus ordered the newest crew member who nodded in affirmative and leaped onto the ship of the still missing 'Spiral' Weldo in a single, mighty movement.

Appatus let out a slight crack of a smile while emptied the burnt contents of his pipe into the ocean and gracefully jumped onto his ship, determined to trick the 'Fat Monk' into following him.

(End of Chapter 3: Maroon Island)

* * *

><p>An: Damn was that a long ass chapter! Now I can finally move on to the four part rift chapter, heck yes! Anyways I am tired of using consecutive exclamation marks because it makes me feel like give off the impression of an enthusiastic person... don't worry, I'm not. Its just that I spent 30 days writing only 1500 words and then only two days writing the next 7,000. I guess that is just how I am though.

Anyways, Appatus is definitely my fav char to write as in Sorus's crew and even though this four parter was long delayed, it was a fun write. Tons of inside jokes between me and friends, me and my co-authors, and even some between me and myself 'It has a bottom!' LOL too bad you guys will never truly appreciate that. Oh and a word of advice, don't fuck with a dude's tadpole. Oh and yes I planned for Weldo to never have been captured from the beginning.

Okay preview for the next Rift chapter, which will prob not be out until may. Brizan wakes up in the morning and acts as if he possessed by a demon(as he does for thirty consecutive minutes every time he he brought into the world of the wakened before his normal, conscious and unemotional self takes control.) Basically shit goes down and there's nothing to eat so he is forced to work on the ship without breakfast. There is more of a plot but I don't care enough to say anymore right now, you guys haven't earned it yet.

BTW thanks so much for all the reviews over the past week, I don't know how we got thought of when we were on like page 10, but I am not complaining. Past 100, heck yea!

Also, check out the community that this fic is a part of. Every other fic in there is just as original and fun.

Grandmaster Briz, out!


	23. Blackroot Pirates Chapter 3 Part 1

Disclaimer: We do not own One Piece!

_Maple Island? Trouble Before Landing?_

The moon shimmered as the bright sun rose into the sky. The waves rocked the boat gently across the ocean. Raiein was walking around the little but comfortable boat; he was looking at every little detail or thing that was somewhat interesting to him. Kaiyou was next to the wheel in a little chair she found. The wind was keeping the cool breeze from disappearing and giving way to the blazing sun. Every once and awhile, Kaiyou would hear a few bickering words between the swordsman and his swords, mainly Myoujou. She looked up at the sky and studied the sun. It was almost nine in the morning. There was a loud sound of something hitting the side of the boat. Kaiyou, curious, walked to the edge of the boat and looked toward the water. She blinked a few times at what she saw. Raiein came to stand next to her and looked.

"What the hell is that?" Raiein said with a wonder. "Never seen anything like this before, have you?" Kaiyou only shook her head.

"I could only imagine. Shall we pull it up?" Kaiyou questioned delicately. Raiein shrugged and grabbed it.

"Shall I say that it's pretty slimy? Not to mention kind of heavy." Raiein dropped the object on the boat and they both stared at it. Kaiyou unconscientiously took a step away from it. The object was unusual shaped. It was like a sphere yet somehow a box. There looked to be a keyhole. "What would we call this, a box or a sphere? Can you see the unusual coloring?" Kaiyou nodded. The color was purple yet green.

"I would be careful opening that Raiein. There's some type of power radiating from it." Kishin said softly enough that it didn't give Raiein a heart attack. Myoujou laughed menacingly.

"Just rip it to shreds. It can't kill you." Myoujou said sardonically. Raiein merely sighed and carefully tried to open it after Kaiyou nodded. To both of their surprise, it held a bright gem in the same color as the container.

"What is a gem like this doing floating in the ocean?" When Raiein didn't get a reply, he looked up to see Kaiyou hiding behind the cabin door on the other side of the boat. "Um… Kaiyou, why are you all the way over there? It's not like the gem is going to attack you or anything like that."

"I don't like that gem. It makes me uncomfortable." Kaiyou replied softly. "You're better off, keeping that away from me." Raiein blinked in confusion, but nonetheless kept the gem away from her.

"No worries, I'll keep it away from you. When do you think we'd reach another island?" Raiein asked to keep her talking.

"I'm not entirely sure. Half a day or so…." Kaiyou sighed softly to herself before walking back to the wheel. "What do you think the next island would be like?"

"I couldn't guess truthfully. I haven't been to another island before other than the ones right off the shores of my own island." Raiein put the gem somewhere Kaiyou wouldn't see it and sat down next to her. "It could be full of ignorant people, or hot-headed people. It could have only children. Or…." Kaiyou chuckled softly. Raiein looked at her. Somehow to him, Kaiyou always seemed to radiate a silent sadness.

"I suppose it would be like most islands. A place full of people that live peacefully in a town or village that kept the families that live there together." Raiein could feel her grow distant from him. It was unusual, on Laqueus; Kaiyou always gave a different feeling to Raiein. On the sea, something was always different about her. Her mood was like the weather in the Grand Line, or what he heard about the weather in the Grand Line at least. Kaiyou looked up at the sudden gust of wind.

"Something wrong Kaiyou?" There was a glazed look in her eyes. "Kaiyou?" She turned and looked at him. A chill ran down his spine.

"Looks like we're not going to get to keep a peaceful trip to the next island after all; we've got company." Kaiyou replied while looking over to her left. Raiein turned to see as well. In the distance was a ship with a Jolly Roger flying in the wind.

"Maybe we could somehow persuade them to leave us alone?" Raiein suggested with reservation in his voice.

"I highly doubt we could persuade them to do that. They're pirates. If they're anything like pirates of legend, then I'm afraid that they're going to be quite rough." Kaiyou sighed softly. "I dare hope they don't see us."

"I don't think that's possible since they're coming right at us. We'll most likely have to fight, how troublesome." Raiein replied. His katana laughed, startling him.

"Who cares? I just want some blood!" Myoujou exclaimed. Raiein sighed annoyed. Kaiyou giggled delicately. Raiein noticed that Kaiyou suddenly had a faraway look again. He watched worried.

"Is it me, or does she seems to space out frequently?" Kishin inquired. "In fact, she's spaced out about five times since waking up this morning."

"Don't bring it up." Raiein turned toward Kaiyou and poked her. "Kaiyou, this isn't the time to be spacing out. Those pirates are pretty close to us." Kishin rolled his eyes in annoyance, while mumbling under his breath.

"Huh? Oh I'm sorry. I guess we might want to be prepared for anything then." Kaiyou mumbled as she walked into the cabin. Raiein looked over at the ship that was coming closer to them. His hands rested on his katana; ready at a moment's notice to retaliate. Kaiyou returned a few minutes later with her belt hidden under her hoodie. Her face set in an emotionless expression. The pirate ship slowed next to their little boat. A ladder flew over the side of the ship. Raiein unconsciously stood a bit in front of Kaiyou. A burly man jumped down from the ship, rocking the boat back and forth on the ocean's surface. Raiein could hear some of the crewmembers from the ship groaning at their ally.

"Yah could da use the ladder Cap. After all, da men did drop it just for yah." A slim male, that had piercing black eyes that contrasted with his reddish-white hair, said. There was a frightening smirk plastered on his face. Kaiyou watched as the man walk up next to his captain. "Cap, didjah yah find what yah looking for?" His eyes were mere slits, sort of like a cat's.

"Not yet I suppose, and do something about your speech. It's annoying." The captain replied deafeningly. Kaiyou resisted the urge to cringe from the frequency of the man's voice. He looked down at Raiein and Kaiyou and smiled. "Well its not every day that we, pirates, see such a beautiful lady on the waters." Kaiyou's fingers twitched unconsciously. "How about you come with me? I could give you everything you ever wanted. All you would have to do is be my girl, how about it?" There was a lecherous smile plastered on his face. Raiein glanced at Kaiyou from the corner of his eyes. Her hair was covering her eyes.

"Hey, Kai…." Raiein started speaking.

"Quiet." Her voice was merely a whisper, yet it sent a chill down Raiein's spine. Kaiyou walked in front of Raiein. "Who sent you? And don't you dare say that no one sent you." Raiein could hear the crew murmuring among themselves from above. Kishin and Myoujou watched in anticipation. The captain's smile turned into an ugly frown. In an instant, he managed to grab Kaiyou by the wrist and hold her dangling in front of him. Raiein stood wide-eyed in shock.

"When…?" Raiein thought to himself.

"How dare you speak to me like that you ignorant bitch? Don't you know who I am?" The captain roared angrily. The men on the boat were chuckling to themselves. "I am Captain Cesare Calico, the man that owns these waters."

"These waters don't belong to anyone, it belongs to everyone." Kaiyou retorted softly. Calico squeezed her wrist, wanting her to scream. Kaiyou merely bit the inside of her lip and stared at him. Raiein was about to pull out his katana when the cat-like pirate pounced him to the boat's deck.

"You shouldn't dare interfere with cap's toy."

"What are you after?" Raiein asked the pirate. He smiled felinely and shrugged.

"Cap, didn't really say. You're better off just watching. Then maybe he'll ask you to join." Raiein looked at Kaiyou, who continued to star at the man.

"What are you doing Raiein? This isn't time to be kissing the deck." Kishin accused annoyed. Raiein closed his eyes. "Raiein, there's a demon among them damn it." When he opened his eyes again, they were once again dull. Kaiyou glanced over her shoulder at Raiein worried.

"You shouldn't be worried about others if I were you." Calico stated with malice. She looked up and her eyes were dark.

"You should let go of my wrist if you still want that hand of yours." Kaiyou replied threateningly. A dark aura engulfed the area. Raiein took that moment to kick the cat-like pirate off of him with Myoujou drawn.

"Kaiyou, you can stop messing around now. I'm tired of these people." Raiein said loudly. Kaiyou nodded and within a second, she was standing back to back with Raiein. Calico stared at where his hand should have been. The next second, he was screaming in pain, while the blood dripped to the deck. Raiein smiled weakly. "Dang, Kaiyou don't you think that was a bit overboard?" Raiein noticed her dagger attached to the chain was vibrating quietly around her feet.

"I should have known. I should have seen it coming. I knew that my life wasn't going to be peaceful anymore…." Kaiyou whispered only loud enough for Raiein to hear. "It's too bad. There's no going back." Kaiyou looked at Calico. "You brought it back. Now you shall fear the ocean for all eternity. Raiein, take care of that cat-like demon; the captain is mine." She stepped forward and the air around her grew cold. "Odori no Ken – Fuzei Tantou(1)." She spun the dagger, covered in a thin layer of air, and aimed for Calico's heart. Calico dodged and aimed a kick for Kaiyou's stomach.

Raiein looked at the cat-pirate in front of him. "How about you drop the charades? You're a demon cat aren't you? If I'm not mistaken a neko-mata for sure." The cat-like pirate laughed.

"What does that mean then?" The pirate asked with a knowing smile. Myoujou growled evilly.

"What are you waiting for Raiein? The owner of the body is already dead. That neko-mata is merely using it. Kill it damn it!" Raiein started attacking the pirate but for some odd reason, the attacks wouldn't connect with the pirate. The pirate smiled cat-like and managed to bit down into Raiein's arm. Raiein slammed the pirate into the cabin wall. The pirate's jaw grip was tighter than Raiein had anticipated. Myoujou radiated heat like the morning star. "Raiein get that damn cat off of your damn arm! He's vile!" Kishin shook his head in annoyance.

"It seems that your friend is having some trouble with my partner." Calico said suddenly. The crew all yelled and cheered for their captain and first mate. Kaiyou could care less about that. Her mind was blank with only one thought running through her head. "What are you going to do now?" Calico quickly moved into position as his crew threw a metal pole at her. She dodged. The next moment Kaiyou was flying off the boat from the force of a kick from Calico. Kaiyou fell head first into the ocean water. She panicked as the water engulfed her. She couldn't move. The water was pulling her toward the ocean floor. Calico smiled as she fell into the water.

"Raiein, help me…." Kaiyou thought helplessly. The water was eating her alive. Her body felt like lead. Raiein saw Kaiyou fall into the water from the corner of his eyes. There was one problem. He was extremely busy with the demon cat. There was a tug from the bottom of his soul. Raiein looked at the pirate.

"I hope you can swim, little kitty cat." Raiein ran to the side of the boat and jumped in after Kaiyou, with the pirate still hanging onto his arm. The pirate immediately removed his teeth from Raiein's arm and swam toward the surface. Raiein sheathed Myoujou and looked around the water for Kaiyou. Raiein could see her sinking deeper and deeper. He swam as quickly as he could toward Kaiyou. He had difficulty swimming toward her. Raiein could feel the ocean taking her further away from him. He reached out to grab her arm and pulled her into his arms as he swam toward the surface. As he broke the surface, he took a deep breath. He swam toward their little boat and was greeted with a metal blade in his face.

"You're back quicker than I expected." Raiein looked at the owner of the blade and scowled. Calico bent down next to the blade wielder and squeezed Raiein's injured arm.

"Urgh!" Raiein watched helplessly as the blade wielder took Kaiyou out of his arm. Myoujou was yelling at Raiein to stop acting weak. With his free hand he grabbed Kishin and embedded the dagger into Calico's right foot. Calico, out of anger, picked him up and threw him against the wall. Only that Raiein never hit the wall, he managed to get into a fighting position. "If I have to, I'll destroy your entire ship." Raiein saw one of the crew members lifting Kaiyou onto the ship. "Damn it. Kishin, allow me your strength. Oni no Tantou – Fujin Dageki(2)!" A powerful wind slash attack the side of the ship making the crew loses their grip on Kaiyou. Raiein quickly sheathed Kishin and pulled out Myoujou. "Oni no Ken – Shen Ryuu(3)." A dragon whirled around him making Calico and the blade wielder go flying off the small boat. Raiein caught Kaiyou before she hit the deck. "Kaiyou wake up. Come on." She was extremely cold in his arm. "Kaiyou!" Raiein gently laid her against the cabin wall. "Oni no Ken – Keres(4)!" Darkness attacked the ship and it suddenly erupted into flames. Raiein took this moment of confusion to take the boat away from that ship with the sudden help from the wind. Raiein sheathed Myoujou and ran back over to Kaiyou. She had gotten extremely pale. He picked her up and walked her inside. He grabbed a towel and dried her hair. He looked at her wet clothing and sighed. "What the hell should I do? If she doesn't get out of those clothes she's going to catch a cold."

"Just do her the favor and take them off." Myoujou said obnoxiously. Kishin snapped at Myoujou.

"Don't you have any moral Myoujou? It isn't correct for a man to undress a woman." The two weapons started to bicker over the meaning of having moral when they were merely weapon spirits.

"Please can you two be quiet for once." Raiein asked in a quiet voice. He was looking for a bigger towel to wrap her in. The two weapons silenced themselves in worry. He hoped to be able to suck all of the water out by the towel. Raiein sighed as he ended up using the small towel to wrap her in and taking the blanket off the bed and wrapping that around her and the towel. He then walked over to his area and took his coat off and hung it on the hook to dry. He walked pulled out a dry pair of clothing and went into the bathroom for a quick shower. Myoujou and Kishin were left near Kaiyou. The two of them sighed at the same time.

"What the hell is wrong with him? It must have been that damn neko-mata." Myoujou said viciously. Kishin sighed softly.

"Myoujou, I believe that it's also the fact that Kaiyou was rendered unconscious on his watch. It seems to me that she might end up meaning something to him." Kishin replied. "This was the first time he didn't yell at us to be quiet or threaten us with the acid. He must be worried about her. Don't tell me you're not worried." Myoujou rattled softly. Kishin smiled before frowning. "Why isn't she waking?"

"Don't ask me. I'm no freaking doctor. For crying out loud, I don't even have hands." Myoujou replied softly. Raiein came out shirtless. "Don't you ever change your outfits?" Raiein merely shrugged in reply. He walked over to Kaiyou and laid her on the bed.

"You two keep an eye on her. I'm going to go see where we're headed." Raiein left the cabin without waiting for a reaction. The two weapons silently watched Kaiyou.

_**Loki, Maple Island – Early Morning**_

The figure walked through the Mediterranean looking city. His honey blond hair was being caressed by the gentle wind. As he walked through the city, he could hear women whispering and gossiping around him. He sighed softly. He entered a shop and listened to the bell ring. A young woman came out smiling at him. She was around her early twenties and had startling silver eyes that contrasted with her light purple hair. She was dressed in a silver dress that stopped at her knees.

"What a surprise. I wasn't expecting you to drop by. After all, you did decide to go looking for that Reaper of Morana."

"Enough of the idle talk, it's time we started." The figure commanded. She smiled and left the room. He looked at the little items lying around the store. "Alcestis, what is all of this?"

"Stuff that humans like for your information, they sell quite well." She shouted from the other room. The figure walked around the shop bored. "Did your trip go well?"

"How do you think my trip went, Alcestis?" The figure could hear Alcestis giggling in the back.

"It sounds like it was almost a waste of time."

"Not quite. Remember that guy is on Laqueus. He seems to be enjoying himself. He told me that the one that knew about the Reaper of Morana was on that island, only that he died by the pseudo-marines' hand. It turns out that that the Reaper of Morana was being protected by the Spyro Pirates." The figure said while sitting himself on Alcestis's counter. "Have you heard of them?" Alcestis came back out dressed in a purple T-shirt and grey jeans.

"I've heard rumors about them. Not sure if those are true, but I could look them up for you if you wish." Alcestis walked over to the figure and sat on the counter next to him. "Did something happen? You still seem out of it." There was concern laced in her words. The figure looked over at her.

"I suppose it hasn't sunk in yet." The figure looked at his hands. "My hands are stained in blood. At least that's what I believe." Alcestis put her hand on his cold ones.

"Shall I call up the crew? You sound like you want to return to the sea." Alcestis sighed when the figure didn't reply. "Well then, I guess I better call them up." She stood up and walked over to her den den mushi before dialing.

_**Marine Base – Maple Island**_

The marines were all busy running around with their duties. However, one marine sat quietly under a tree resting. He had chin length silvery-gray hair with a small, long ponytail in the back. His right eye was hidden under a black eye-patch, while his left eye was dull. His two pistols were sitting in his holsters that wrapped around his hip and thighs. Next to him was his trusty sniper rifle. A young marine came running up to him.

"Sir, you are wanted by the Ensign. He said it was urgent." The young marine jumped in an awestruck fear as the marine stood up and brushed the dust away.

"How urgent is urgent to the Ensign?" The marine's gentle voice asked. His left eye never really focused onto the young marine. He merely stared into the space ahead of him. After a moment of silence, the marine sighed in frustration. "Marine, I'm asking you a question. How urgent is urgent in regards to the Ensign?"

"I'm sorry, sir! He didn't say, other than urgent, sir!" The marine looked off toward the main building. He waved the young marine off, grabbed his sniper rifle, and walked toward the building. The wind blew strong through the marine compound. The marine looked up toward the sky with his eyes closed.

"Hey, are you going to keep the Ensign waiting, Hero?" A male voice said cockily. The Hero turned his head slightly, eyes still closed. He merely sighed and continued walking. "Hey! Hero, wait!" The Hero tilted his head over to the owner of the voice. "Wait a second!"

"Yes?" The Hero said softly.

"How long will you bask in that glory of yours?" the man asked austerely. The Hero opened the door to the building ignoring the question. He walked through the halls, saluting as he went by. The lowly ranked marines held him in high regards or with contempt. The Hero stopped in front of a huge door and knocked after taking a deep breath.

"Come in." The Hero walked inside and closed the door behind him.

"Sir!" He stood at attention. The Hero tensed when he felt another presence in the room with the Ensign. The Ensign was an average sized man in his late twenties with short black hair and the darkest orange eyes a person could ever lay eyes on. He was standing near the window from the Hero's senses.

"At ease, marine." The Hero relaxed and finally opened his left eye. "The city of Loki has requested your assistance. They have refused to allow someone else to do the job required. They merely wish for someone that is of celebrity status there."

"Sir, excuse me for interrupting, but what exactly is this request?" The Ensign turned to look at him. The Ensign cringed at the sight of the dull left eye. It had no light in it at all.

"Something about being rewarded for your efforts in the Battle of Eydis a few years ago. They tell me that it's to make it a tradition. The Lokians seem adamant on it, so what do you say? Willing to go over to that city for a few days?" The Ensign asked skeptically. "Usually we don't do these sorts of things; however they refused to allow us entry to help them when something dangerous happens. They said to the courier that they must see you in person."

"Sir, if that is what you wish for me to do, than for the greater good I shall go to Loki and do as they ask for their little party."

"Good, then please head over to that city by tomorrow morning if possible. You're dismissed." The Hero saluted and walked out of the room. As the door closed, the Hero could hear the Ensign talking in a whisper with the presence.

_**Loki, Maple Island – Morte Reposée**_

Alcestis glanced at the figure that lay on her couch sleeping. His honey blond hair reflected the light that came through the window. There was a frown plastered on his face, while he slept. Alcestis sighed softly to herself. The ringing of the bell brought her attention to her shop. She walked out and smiled warmly at the customer.

"_Damn it, -! What are you doing?" A male voice said bluntly, while picking - up by the arm. "Look I know that you're shocked, but what would the group do if you died?"_

"_You're the one to talk! They need you more than me! I'm merely a man with nothing left!" The man threw him into the boat and forced the boatman to leave. - watched silently while his mind was frozen at the sight that lay in front of him. The sky was engulfed in reds, oranges, and yellows. "NO!"_

The figure sat upright abruptly. His breathing was irregular and full of gasps. His hair was wet with sweat that rolled down the side of his face. The figure covered his face with his right hand and calmed his breathing.

"What's wrong? Did you have that dream again?" Alcestis inquired as she sat down on the loveseat.

"I haven't had that dream in years. It must mean that the Reaper of Morana is close by."

A/N: Well… first I would like to apologize for taking a long time. I hope this first part of this chapter is up to par! Anyway, the attacks used in this chapter is called: 1. Odori no Ken: Fuzei Tantou = Sword Dance – Air Dagger, 2. Oni no Tantou: Fujin Dageki = Demon Dagger – Fujin's Strike, 3. Oni no Ken: Shen Ryuu = Demon Sword – Dragon Spirit, 4. Oni no Ken: Keres = Demon Sword – Death Spirits. I would also like to thank the following people:

Seastorm222: Thank you for all the reviews you have left me. I really enjoy reading them.

Kurayami Angel: Thank you for enjoying the Blackroot Pirates and reviewing.

Oggytheogre321: Thank you for reviewing the previous chapters. I really enjoyed reading your reviews.

Alice: Thank you for your reviews. I'm glad you enjoy Raiein as much as I enjoyed writing about him.

And to all the other reviewers and readers I forgot to mention. THANK YOU for your support and giving these four pirate crews a few moments of your time.

A special thanks to my co-authors, Orrhan and Whale for your support and encouragement.

~KairaKara101


	24. Blackroot Pirates Chapter 3 Part 2

Disclaimer: We do not own One Piece in anyway.

_Dangerous Maple Island_

By: Kairakara101

_**Somewhere on the sea, North Blue – Late Afternoon**_

Kishin silently watched Kaiyou as she laid there unconscious. For some odd reason, she wouldn't wake up after her little fall into the water. Raiein hasn't return to the cabin either. Myoujou merely rested as the waves rocked the small boat on the open waters. Her breathing was slow and steady.

_There was water everywhere; the substance that sustained life. Kaiyou was once again a ten year old. She could barely see her surroundings due to the darkness of the cave. Kaiyou panicked as the water level started to rise. She tried to stand up, however a sharp pain ran through her right ankle. She could hear worried voices in the distance. _

"_Kaiyou! Kaiyou, honey! Where are you?" It was Mana's voice. Kaiyou could faintly hear Lancer's voice in the background. Kaiyou opened her mouth to scream that she was here, but no sound came out. The water continued to rise slowly. Kaiyou touched her throat hesitantly, and tried again._

"_Mama…" Kaiyou's eyes widen with fear, when only a whisper came out. "Papa…!" Again it was a quiet whisper. "Somebody, please hear me…." Kaiyou brought her legs towards her chest and hugged them. She closed her eyes and hid her head on her knees._

"_Mana! Lancer! I found her. She's down there. Oh my goodness, the water is rising." The mayor's wife said concerned. Lancer ran over and looked down. _

"_Kaiyou, can you hear me?" Lancer said worryingly. "Honey!" Kaiyou glanced up with tears in her eyes. She merely nodded. Mana was pacing around the opening nervously. "Hold on honey, papa will get you out." Lancer glanced at Mana. "I'm going in to get her."_

"_Then how do you plan on getting out?" Mana inquired swiftly in response. Lancer smirked deviously at Mana. "Don't give me that look. I want to know how you're going to get out." _

"_Simple; I'll make the cave flood with water." Lancer replied with a carefree shrug. Mana shook her head in annoyance. "Mana, you know why I'm willing to take such a risk."_

"_Fine, but you both better come back here alive. I don't want a corpse for a husband." Mana said dejectedly. Lancer nodded and jumped into the cave. Kaiyou jumped in surprise. She looked up to see Lancer smiling at her. _

"_You ready to go home?" Kaiyou nodded. "Okay then. I'm going to flood this cave and it's going to take us up alright?" Kaiyou smiled weakly. "What's the matter?" Kaiyou pointed at her throat and shook her head. "Lost your voice huh? Don't worry; I'm sure mama can fix it. She's like a magician." Kaiyou grinned and nodded happily. "Okay, hold on tight to papa." Lancer put Kaiyou on his back and got into an unusual stance. Lancer took a deep breath and exhaled. He punched the rock wall and it cracked. Lancer punched again and the wall suddenly collapsed allowing gallons and gallons of water to fill the cave. Kaiyou tapped Lancer's shoulder with worry. Lancer gently took her off his back and held onto her tightly. "Don't worry. Papa won't let anything else happen to you." Kaiyou watched as the water rise higher and higher. It took them a few minutes to reach the top of the cave. Mana picked up Kaiyou and the mayor helped Lancer out of the cave. "Mana, Kaiyou's going to need your care."_

"_She lost her voice and sprained her ankle." Mana smiled at the little child in her arms. "Let's go home." _

Kaiyou woke up, wide eyed. Kishin was the first to notice that she was awake. He rattled against the wall and watched as Kaiyou turned her head to look at him.

"You've been asleep for half of the day now. Are you alright?" Kishin asked worried. Myoujou glanced over at Kaiyou with contempt. "Myoujou, don't give her that look." Kaiyou sat up slowly and hugged her legs tightly. "Kaiyou?"

"Did Raiein save me?" She said detachedly hollow voice. Myoujou unconsciously shivered from the suddenly chill that radiated in the room.

"Yes, he did." Kishin replied softly. Myoujou decided to finally speak up.

"He hasn't stepped one foot in this room for three hours, two minutes, forty-six seconds, ten milliseconds and counting." Kaiyou looked at Myoujou with semi-dull eyes. "What? When I get bored, I start counting. It's not my fault I'm hella bored." Kishin rolled his imaginary eyes in annoyance.

"You're so simple-minded sometimes, Myoujou." Kishin said sharply. Kaiyou sighed softly and fell over onto her side. She stared at the wood paneling of the boat. Myoujou was about to retort, when the door opened and Raiein came in. His eyes were still a bit dull from earlier that day. Kaiyou remained still.

"Care to explain to me what happened back there?" Raiein said as gentle as he could. Silence was the only answer he got in return. "Kaiyou…." Raiein's eyes widened when Kaiyou grabbed him by his jacket. Raiein looked in her eyes and saw absolutely nothing. No emotions whatsoever. Even though it looked like she was angry with him for asking. "Look, I've answered most of the questions you have ever asked me. I'm not asking for a life story. I just want to know why you didn't swim up to the surface." Kaiyou slowly let go of his jacket and fell back onto the bed. Her short blackish-blue hair was fanned out on the mattress.

"Fine." She replied quietly. Raiein grabbed a chair and sat down.

"Why didn't you swim to the surface?" Raiein inquired calmly. "Is it because you couldn't swim?" Kaiyou continued to stare at the ceiling.

"No, it's not because I couldn't swim. It's because I can't swim." Kaiyou replied. Kishin and Myoujou sat quietly in the background.

"You can't swim, yet you're on the ocean." Raiein said gradually. "Wait, what do you mean by can't?" Kaiyou closed her eyes and sighed.

"Ever heard of the phrase, 'being a hammer'?" Kaiyou questioned silently. Raiein shook his head. "Then, have you ever heard of Devil Fruits?"

"You mean the fruits that are known to be the Sea Devil's incarnations, and if you eat one you won't be able to swim?" Kaiyou nodded. "Aren't those just myths, rumors?"

"I always thought that demons were merely myths and rumors." Kaiyou said accusingly. Raiein sighed in defeat.

"Touché, don't attack me. So you ate one?" Kaiyou nodded. "That would explain why you can't swim." Raiein stood up suddenly. "You should go shower; you're covered in salt." Kaiyou blinked a few times, before looking at her skin. There were salt crystals crusted to her skin. She laughed sheepishly. Raiein watched as Kaiyou walked off with a pair of clean clothes and disappear into the bathroom. After hearing the shower turn on, Raiein looked over at his swords. "Myoujou, have you heard about these devil fruits?"

"Yes, a few rumors here and there. Why do you ask Raiein?" Myoujou replied in a much gentler tone than usual.

"I was just curious, that's all." Raiein walked over to his swords and picked them up. He then put them where they belonged. Myoujou was placed at his hip on the left side and Kishin next to his left thigh. Raiein walked out onto the deck and observed the open sea.

"What's the matter?" Kishin asked softly.

"An island." Raiein responded absently. "An extremely bright island…." Kaiyou came out quietly and stood near him.

"There is something that has been bothering me for a while now, Raiein." Kaiyou said quietly. Raiein looked at her. She grabbed his injured arm and squeezed it. Raiein's left eye twitched from the pain. "Why didn't you take care of this?" There was blood on her hand.

"…I forgot." Kaiyou blinked and sighed as she went into the cabin. A few minutes later, she was on deck with a first aid kit. She pulled out some cotton buds and a bottle of ointment from the kit. She dabbed it lightly on his wounds cleaning it of dirt. Pulling out some iodine, she dabbed it on the wound to prevent infections. Raiein looked at her while she did this. Her eyes seemed distant. Kaiyou pulled out a roll of bandage and wrapped his arm up. After she was done, she cleaned it up and walked quietly back into the cabin. Raiein blinked and sighed softly. He looked at the incoming island. "It's awfully bright…."

"Unlike your island, I believe this island is called Maple Island. From what I've heard, the island is known for their festivities." Kaiyou stated quietly. "I've read it from a book, if you're wondering how I know." Raiein glanced at the girl standing near him from the corners of his eyes. Her blackish-blue hair was still wet from her little shower. The maroon highlights shimmered under the sunlight. Her golden eyes seemed darker than usual in Raiein's eyes. He would have said it looked haunted. Kaiyou was wearing a light purple turtle-neck with a black jacket that was zipped up to her chest. There were two zipper pockets on either side of the main zipper. She was also wearing gray jeans with her belt attached. Her two daggers rested in their sheaths. Hanging around her neck was the sea-green gem necklace.

"Kaiyou…?"

"Hmm?" Kaiyou replied absently. Raiein sighed softly.

"Never mind, it's nothing." Raiein whispered back. Raiein could feel Myoujou getting excited as they got closer to the island.

_**Loki, Maple Island – Afternoon**_

The Hero walked up to the outskirts of the city. His left eye was glazed over while his other was hidden by the black eye patch. He sensed the gate and the two guards that were there. He tilted his head slightly as he squinted his left eye in concentration, not that he could really see anything with his eyes. His sniper rifle was hanging on his back. His two pistols glinted from the sun's rays.

"Ensign said by tomorrow morning, but…I hope he doesn't mind if I get here by the afternoon instead." His smooth gentle voice muttered quietly. A wind blew gently as the trees rustled in response. His long skinny ponytail followed the breeze. The Hero glanced behind him slightly with his eyes closed. Something was following him. "Hmm…." The presence was large and somewhat warm to his perspective senses. The Hero ignored it and walked toward the gates. The two guards halted him. He reopened his left eye and blinked.

"Stop Marine, the city isn't allowing the World Government to enter; the only exception is the Hero of Eydis." The Hero pulled out a letter and handed it to the guard. The guard scanned the content. His face went from stern to complete embarrassment. "I humbly apologize for not recognizing you, sir!" He smiled sheepishly. "Open the Gates!" The guard returned the letter. "Please enjoy your stay in Loki." The Hero nodded and walked through the gates. The Hero didn't even get ten feet through the gate and the presence flashed past him. The Hero continued walking a bit surprised. The city was much bigger than he had anticipated. He could feel the tall buildings as he walked down the main street. The atmosphere of the bustling city with people walking and yelling made the Hero have a slight headache. The Hero quickly made his way through the crowds of people heading for the city hall. The Hero had no problem moving through the city, due to the fact that the people had noticed him carrying a few loaded weapons and parted the way for him. They seemed to come to a mutual understanding that he wanted to get to the city hall. They were lined up right to the front door of the hall.

"Geez…talk about getting attention." The Hero muttered under his breath. He could hear them whispering among themselves. Before he could even move to open the door, it swung open and the city mayor came out to meet him.

"I got a feeling you'd be coming around this time of day." The mayor was of very short stature. From feeling the smaller presence, the Hero looked down. The mayor had cinnamon colored hair that was spiked in different directions. His brown eyes sort of blended with his hair. He was dressed in a specially tailored cream suit. "Come on in. There are some things I would like to speak about with you." The mayor led the Hero into an elegantly decorated office. There was a pitcher of water with a few cups on his desk. He walked to his seat behind the desk and motioned the Hero to sit. It took the Hero a few moments to realize that notion. He briskly yet gracefully took his seat and closed his eyes. "Do you want anything to drink?"

"Water would be fine, thank you." The mayor poured a glass and handed it to him. The Hero took a sip and put the glass down gingerly.

"Now onto the business, we want you to be a part of our festival that will be happening tomorrow night. We personally would like you to give a speech; however, it is up to you if you wish to do one. What do you say?" The Hero stayed silent before opening his eyes.

"What type of speech did you have in mind? I'm sure the city council has already prepared one, correct?" The Hero questioned softly. The mayor stood up abruptly. "There's no need to feel so shocked and like a frightened petite kitten, Mr. Mayor." The mayor felt compelled to stare into his misted left eye. "I don't mean any harm. It's just that…" His toned changed to threatening, "I dislike having words stuffed into my mouth by people other than myself." A small smile graced his face. "Therefore, I would like to see it, before I decide on saying it in front of a crowd." The last part was said in a kinder tone. The mayor nodded nervously as he walked over to where the speech was. "Oh one more thing, it seems like you requested for me, however it seems like you weren't expecting me. In fact, it appears to me that you were expecting someone else." The mayor froze. "Mr. Mayor, you really don't even know what the Hero of Eydis looks like. In fact, you assumed since I'm carrying weapons on me." The mayor turned to face the Hero.

"Are you the Hero of Eydis?" His voice shook nervously. The Hero merely stood and looked at the mayor.

"What do you think, Mr. Mayor? I believe I was rewarded the metal for that battle, therefore, yes I am the Hero of Eydis. However, I could care less about the fame it gave me in all honesty. I would rather remain the nameless soldier then the Hero of Eydis." The mayor dropped the keys to the filing cabinet. The Hero tucked the action into the back of his mind.

"I apologize for not realizing it earlier." The mayor pulled out the speech and handed it to the Hero. The Hero looked at it. His right eye twitched with annoyance under the eye patch. The Hero took a deep breath and exhaled it slowly. He took his right hand and moved it over the letters. As his hand moved over the letters, he saw the words form in his mind. The mayor watched curiously. "What are you doing?"

"I'm doing what you call reading, but with my hands instead of my eyes." The mayor gave him a confused expression. "If you keep thinking I'm going to be able to understand your expressions, please save me the trouble of trying to figure out what expression you'll be doing by telling me."

"Oh I'm sorry. It isn't anything you should worry yourself about." The Hero nodded slowly before finishing the last few sentences to the speech. The mayor waited until he put it down before speaking up. "Is it to your liking?"

"…It shall be fine. Is that all? I'm feeling a bit tired." The mayor smiled and turned to his secretary that came through the door at that exact moment.

"Can you please take him to the arranged hotel, Margrinet?" He asked sweetly. She was a petite lady with golden hair and the darkest eyes the entire city had ever seen. She was what a typical secretary would look like, especially with the suit and the clipboard that she seemed to refuse to part with.

"It shall be my pleasure, Mr. Mayor." She turned to her guest. "Follow me." When they left the building, she walked in step with the Hero. "I apologize for the Mayor's actions. He's a bit high on his horse. By the way, I'm Margrinet. It's a pleasure to finally meet the Hero of Eydis."

"I'm Rainier Nero." Her dark eyes sparkled with an unseen emotion. Nero felt uneasy around her. She seemed to be a bit stiff with tension. Nero kept his stoic expression as he was led to the hotel in silence.

"Here we are. I hope the hotel is to your liking." Margrinet walked over to the receptionist while Nero scanned the area. He tilted his head in confusion. The presence was watching him. Nero filed it away as he felt the keys to his room placed in his hands. "Your room is number 102. It's on the first floor second door on the right."

"Thank you."

"This is my card." She handed the card. "If you have any problems, give me a call. Also, I'll be by tomorrow to show you around the city. Good Night, Mr. Rainier." Nero watched her leave, before walking toward his room. He opened the door and froze. The presence was right in front of him. The smell of copper reached his nose. The presence whimpered after relaxing from its alert position. Nero closed the door behind him. He knelt down next to it. He felt his hand get licked.

"Where are you injured? I'll stop the bleeding for you." He felt his hand get muzzled by the presence's head. Nero smiled gently. The presence's head was furry. He absently rubbed the presence's head. "You're a wolf…such nice fur. But really, tell me where you're injured." Nero became worried when the head relaxed in his hands. His left eye widened in surprise when the wolf spoke telepathically with him.

"You aren't afraid of me?" The wolf's feminine voice was weak yet tender. Nero smiled and touched his forehead against the wolf's forehead. He could feel the wolf's astonishment.

"Why would I be afraid of you? You've done nothing wrong against me."

"My right hind leg was sliced by one of the guards." Nero moved to feel the wound gently. The wolf watched him remove his sniper rifle and pulled out a medical kit. He walked over to the bucket for ice and filled it with water. Nero grabbed a few towels from the bathroom and came back. He opened the kit and pulled out a needle and some thread. Nero went right to work on cleaning out the blood, before cleaning it with some alcohol. He cleaned the needle and started stitching. The wolf whimpered softly. Nero unconsciously rubbed under her chin, before resuming the work. After he was done, Nero wrapped it up with bandages and cleaned up the mess. He washed the blood off his hands. He stared down at them; he could only imagine how the clear water hung to his skin. When he came back out, the wolf had her head on her front paws. Nero walked over and sat down against the side of the bed. The wolf was literally half his size. Her tail wrapped around her body. The wolf watched as Nero's left eye closed slowly in tiredness. He tried to fight it but succumbed to his body's desires to sleep. "Could it be…that…?" The wolf put the thought aside and decided to sleep as well.

_**Harbor; Loki, Maple Island – Late Afternoon**_

Raiein jumped onto the dock and tied the boat. Kaiyou jumped off after securing the cabin door with a lock. Even from the harbor, Raiein could see the city's bustling atmosphere. Not that the harbors weren't busy, they were actually quite hectic. The fishermen were unloading their catch and selling it to certain people. Raiein scanned the harbor.

"How did you know it was Maple Island? You don't have a map." Raiein asked with curiosity.

"Simple, I guessed." She smiled. Raiein noticed that the smile didn't quite reach her eyes. "Well then, I'm going to go look at the shops. What are you going to do?"

"Demon hunting!" Myoujou yelled out like a child who just got a toy. Raiein jumped slightly from his voice. Raiein looked down at his katana.

"Don't startle me." Raiein hissed at the blade. Kishin sighed at the two. Kaiyou blinked a few times. "No we're not going demon hunting. I personally don't feel like it after what happened this morning." Myoujou was about to whine, when Raiein pulled out the acid. "This bottle is just for the two of you. However, I'm feeling a bit annoyed so I might pour the entire bottle on you Myoujou."

"Raiein…is there anywhere you wanted to go?" Kaiyou asked quietly in order to not startle him. Raiein shook his head. "Then I hope you don't mind coming with me." Raiein watched as she walked off toward the full streets.

"Raiein, are you waiting to get left behind?" Kishin asked softly. Raiein blinked before walking after her.

"I hope she isn't like all the other girls, Kishin." Myoujou said loudly. Raiein suppressed the urge to pour the acid. "I hate when they shop. They take forever!" Kishin rolled his imaginary eyes. Raiein studied Kaiyou as she walked past all of the clothes stores. She walked into an alley that looked abandoned. Kaiyou stared at the sign, before opening the door and walking in. When they grew accustom to the lighting of the room, Raiein noticed the assortment of weapons and tools. Myoujou whistled a bit stunned. Kaiyou walked over to the counter and hit the bell. It rang. The shop owner walked out from the back door. She had a slender body that was in extremely good shape. Her short cream silver hair was neatly tied with a bandana. Her eyes were lime green with the pupil in the shape of a vertical ellipse. She reminded Raiein of a snake, a cream snake. She looked up and gasped in surprise.

"Aeris?"

"I was right. This was your shop. Papa told me that I should drop by if I ever landed on Maple Island." Kaiyou smiled happily. The shop owner came over and gave her a bear squishing hug. Kaiyou laughed and tapped her shoulder. "Umm…I'm not the only one here." The shop owner stopped and glanced at Raiein. She studied the young man from top to bottom.

"This better not be your boyfriend. If he is, I might just skin him." Raiein blinked and turned to look at Kaiyou. She merely laughed sheepishly.

"Ethelinda! Don't kill him, Raiein isn't a boyfriend; just a traveling partner." Kaiyou had to restrain the owner. Kaiyou sweat dropped.

"He had better not do anything to hurt you. If I see him hurt you, I swear he'll be dead on the side of the road"

"Mah Ethelinda, please don't threaten him. He hasn't done anything to warrant your anger." Kaiyou said quietly. Ethelinda struggled in her grasp.

"I don't like him! There's something about him that tells me to not trust him." Raiein stood there unsure of what to do. "There's something evil about him." Raiein blinked again and looked at Kaiyou for some explanation.

"Wow, she's a feisty human. Don't you think Kishin? She has such a nice way to say hi." Myoujou said piercingly. Raiein blocked an attack with Kishin in his hand. Ethelinda had a knife against Kishin's blade. Kaiyou sighed softly under her breath. She looked up toward the heavens with questions in her eyes.

"Where did you get those demon blades?" Ethelinda hissed with venom. Kaiyou watched from the sidelines a bit bored. If she tried to interfere, Ethelinda would have attacked her. How troublesome.

"I'm not obligated to tell you anything, especially after your earlier display of dislike." Raiein said quietly. Myoujou studied the woman in front of him. Kishin blinked with his imaginary eyes bored. The two were staring at each other with a mutual dislike.

"That is enough, Klytié Ethelinda." Kishin said after a few minutes passed. Ethelinda looked at the dagger questioningly. "If you must know, the two of us are perfectly fine in Lando's hands."

"Kishin, you damned bastard. Both Myoujou and you go die in a freaking ditch together!" Ethilinda sneered.

Raiein's right eye twitched with annoyance. "Tell me what is going on you two annoying weapons." He asked darkly. Kaiyou sat on the counter with curiosity.

"The three of us had a history together, or at least met each other a few times." Myoujou replied. "Other than that, I don't feel like talking about it." Ethelinda smiled venomously.

"I still haven't paid you both back for that one incident. Shall I pay you both back?"

"Excuse me, Ethelinda." Kaiyou interrupted quietly. "Papa said that he kept something with you." Ethelinda froze stiffly. "He mentioned it to a friend of his a few years before his death."

"Yes, he did give me something to keep. I'm not supposed to give it to you though." Ethelinda replied softly as she stopped attacking the three in front of her. "Plus, you don't have permission to know about it."

"Why I'm I not allowed to know?" Kaiyou asked; her eyes were staring at Ethelinda.

"It's better that way, Aeris." Ethelinda answered with finality. Kaiyou sighed and jumped off the counter.

"I'll be going then. I want to see some stuff before I stock up on supplies." Kaiyou said while walking out the door. Raiein strolled after her. Ethelinda quickly grabbed her Den Den Mushi after they were gone. She dialed a number and waited.

"Hello? This is Eileifr." A masculine voice came through the snail.

"Yah damn bastard. What were you thinking of sending Reigh's son with her?" Ethelinda said annoyed. The voice on the other end chuckled.

"Oh Ethelinda, it's a pleasure to hear from you." He said gently unfazed by her insult.

"Why is Reigh's son with her?" Ethelinda said with cold venom.

"Isn't that simple Ethelinda? Sena sent him with her."

"Are you fucking with me? Lando Sena sent her son with Lancer's daughter?" Silence engulfed the room. "Silvanus!"

"Calm down. It'll be fine. Doesn't it make you feel better though? Reigh's son isn't a pushover."

"Fuck you." Ethelinda muttered under her breath. "Next time, we meet you better get me drunk if you don't want to die."

"That is if you are willing to do some catching up." Silvanus replied without hesitation. "Decide what you must do, Ethelinda. The Reaper of Morana…," there was a pause, "looks like time isn't on our side. I got to go. We'll party later."

"Silvanus? What's going on over there?" The sound of crashing chairs and tables could be heard. "Silvanus?" Ethelinda stood up straight with worry. The sound of breaking glass entered through the snail.

"Look, I'm busy. I'll call back later!" Ethelinda felt a chill run down her spine at those words. The snail fell asleep shortly after. Ethelinda hung up the snail and sat down in one of the chairs. Her head was in her hands.

* * *

><p>AN: Yay! This part was much longer than I anticipated. In fact this chapter is coming out much longer than I anticipated. This part doesn't have much action, sorry. Hope it keeps you interested…I feel that this part might have been a disappointment…. Anyhow, keep reading, and reviewing. They keep my spirits up when writing. Thanks for the continuing support!


	25. Blackroot Pirates Chapter 3 Part 3

Disclaimer: We do not own One Piece in anyway.

_Who The Hell Do You Think You Are?_

_By: Kairakara101_

_**Loki, Maple Island – Morte Reposée**_

"Alcestis, call the gang." The figure commanded as he stood up swiftly. "It's been long enough for them to enjoy their vacation." Alcestis smirked and waltzed over to the cabinet and opened it to reveal a unique looking Den Den Mushi.

"You know they've been waiting for you to call. I've already called them. We'll pick them up as we go. Worse comes to worse, they'll just meet us on that island." The figure nodded and stared out the window. She dialed a number and waited for an answer. "Hey, it's me. He's back."

"I see. Alcestis, you know where to meet me. See you guys soon." A male voice replied before the snail went to sleep. Alcestis glanced at the figure, who stared back at her. He smirked as he pulled a log book from his pocket. Alcestis nodded and disappeared into the darkness of her back room. A few moments later, she was back with a bag. She walked over to where the money was stored and grabbed all of it. She opened the door and the figure left the building. She closed the door and locked it.

_**Hotel, Loki, Maple Island – Evening**_

The wolf ducked her head down between her paws, her ears were sensitive to loud noises and plenty of that was coming from the next room over. Movement to her side made her focus on the human beside her. He slowly opened his eye and blinked the sleep out of them. The glazed left eye starred back at her. She watched as he got up deliberately and strapped his rifle to his back.

"Are you hungry?" Nero asked in a whisper. The wolf looked at him wondering why he was talking in a much lower voice then before. "We can talk more outside. What do you say?" The wolf stood up; her head reached his hip. She nudged him to move. "Alright, stay near me. I don't want to deal with you getting hurt again."

"I would agree with not getting hurt." Silence occupied the room. "Thank you for helping me…."

"I'm Rainier Nero. Nero is fine though."

"Thank you, Nero. I'm Ylva Lyall; I'm from a species of wolves known as…"

"I know. You're part of a rare wolf species known as the Winged Arctic Gray Wolf. My little sister is in love with your kind." Nero said back softly. "We should go." The two walked out into the city. Nero was given a few stares due to the giant wolf next to him.

"Where is your sister now?" Lyall asked with concern. Nero noticed the tone and glanced up at the evening sky. "Is she alright?"

"She's on the outskirts of the island. However, I'm afraid that I don't know her current well-being. I've haven't been able to go see her due to military regulations." Lyall observed his tense muscles. The air smelt bitter and sweet at the same time. The sweet smell must be from the festivities that were going on. It was the party before the main event. Not that the city ever slept really, in fact, the city never stopped their festivities. "Humans in this city are such party animals. Couldn't they just enjoy the peace and quiet?"

"I highly doubt that Nero. These people have been partying since they've been born. They only know how to party, get drunk, and/or get hooked." Lyall replied with annoyance.

"You really dislike humans don't you?" Nero inquired softly.

"Not all humans, just these humans." Lyall replied strongly. Nero chuckled under his breath. The two of them walked to a bar and ordered something to eat. Lyall noticed his finger moving over the words. His glazed left eye was intriguing to her. There was something about that eye that might help answer why he had an eye patch over his right eye. Lyall glanced up when the door swung open. A young girl with blackish blue hair with maroon highlights walked in with a young man with brown hair and grey eyes behind her. The young man had a katana attached to his left hip, while a dagger was attached to his left thigh. Lyall starred at the girl's golden eyes. Nero turned his head slightly to focus on the two newcomers' presences. Something was off with them both. Both of their presences were dark for some odd reason. It wasn't that they were evil per say it was more of a comforting darkness that surrounded them. Nero sighed softly; there were so many rare presences popping up around him. The two sat a table away from Nero. Nero unconsciously listened into their conversation. Lyall was doing the same.

"Damn those two! I swear I'll drown them in acid one of these days." The male hissed angrily to his female companion. She merely smiled in return.

"That wouldn't do you any good. You'd be weaponless if you did that." She stated plainly. The male sighed.

"What was that earlier? She's a very unusual person. She reminded me of a cream snake."

"I must apologize for her behavior. She isn't usually like that, from what I was told. However, I guess the reason why she reminded you of a snake would be her eyes. They're kind of creepy to certain people." She looked at the menu before dropping it on the table. "You order. I don't have much of an appetite today." The male glanced up at her.

"Is it because she wouldn't tell you about the thing she's safe keeping?" The girl clicked her tongue in annoyance.

"I still think I should be able to know about it." She muttered delicately. Nero tilted his head in thought. The two of them were interesting alright. Nero froze suddenly when he felt the girl's presence focus on him. "You know it isn't nice to eavesdrop on other people's conversations." Nero slowly turned to look at the girl, or what he could see anyway. "You've been studying the two of us since we walked through the door."

"I thought you'd never noticed that, Kaiyou." The male stated a bit more alert then before. His hand was resting on his katana, ready to attack at a moment's notice.

"Raiein, there is no need to fight. I was merely stating a fact." Raiein sighed and removed his hand. "I'm Aeris Kaiyou, and this is Lando Raiein."

"Do you trust people that easily? What if I was a bad guy?" Nero questioned with curiosity. Raiein sat back and relaxed in his chair. Kaiyou could tell that Raiein was a bit frustrated from his bickering swords, since he was so eager to fight.

"Is there something wrong with trusting people as easily as I do? Personally, I don't think you're a bad guy. I would think that you're the type to enjoy some type of quiet activity or plain Nature itself." Kaiyou returned swiftly. Nero was taken aback for a moment. Raiein smirked from his spot.

"How did you?" Nero whispered out still in shock. Kaiyou sat back and smiled.

"It's a secret. Not to mention, I don't tell my secrets to people that I shouldn't trust so easily." Kaiyou returned sweetly. Raiein shook his head at her.

"…I suppose…." Nero tried to focus on her presence. It was strange still. Lyall was still starring at Kaiyou wondering about her eyes.

"Nero, her eyes are golden like the sun." Lyall telepathically said. Raiein and Kaiyou decided to sit with Nero to have a better conversation.

"Really? I can't tell." Nero telepathically replied sarcastically. "What else is there?"

"The man, Raiein, has weapons on him. They radiate power and an evil that most would be afraid of." Lyall replied to Nero's mind. She heard an hmm.

"It would be nice to know both of your names." Kaiyou said softly. Nero messed up his hair.

"I'm Rainier Nero, and this is Ylva Lyall." Nero answered.

"It's a pleasure to meet you both." Kaiyou glanced at his left eye. "I hope you don't mind me asking this, but you wouldn't happen to be blind would you?" Kaiyou questioned with curiosity. Raiein smiled softly. Here she goes again.

"That's correct. How did you know?" Nero said in return. Kaiyou merely smiled.

"Lucky guess; also going by the outfit that makes you a marine to the World Government." Kaiyou stated plainly. Raiein's mouth twitched slightly in irritation.

"That's right." Nero replied with a tilted head.

"I suppose that means that you have very good hearing and other senses right?" Kaiyou asked swiftly.

"Do you always ask this many questions?" Nero inquired of her. The waiter came back and placed their orders down in front of them.

"Do you always interrogate when you're in a bar?" Kaiyou questioned in return. The two of them starred at each other. Kaiyou kicked Raiein in the shin once she saw the food that was placed in front of her from the corner of her eye. Raiein rubbed his throbbing shin, while merely smiling at her and quickly ate his meal without savoring it at all. After he finished eating, he sat back and closed his eyes. Nero and Kaiyou were still having their staring contest. Lyall put her head on Nero's thigh and he petted her head unconsciously.

"Are you this aggressive when asking questions?" Nero replied calmly.

"Are you always this straightforward when questioning?" Kaiyou countered just as calm. Raiein listened to them argue. Lyall was still looking at Kaiyou's golden eyes from her position. Nero and Kaiyou sat there in the tense atmosphere radiating from them. The room was extremely quiet, too quiet. Raiein suddenly snapped his eyes open and kicked the table over while grabbing both Nero and Kaiyou to the protection of the table. The sounds of bullets hit the table's wood. Kaiyou and Nero both blinked in surprise.

"As much as I would like to allow you two to argue by asking question after question, it seems like we have some unwanted guests or is it us who are the unwanted guests." There was a smirk on Raiein's face as he said that. Myoujou was shaking in his sheath. Lyall was growling with dissatisfaction at the interruption. Kaiyou glanced over at Raiein. His hand was on his katana. "What would you like me to do, Kaiyou?"

"Don't even think about feeding Myoujou with their blood! Just knock them out or something so we can get away from here." Kaiyou said calmly to Raiein. Raiein smiled and nodded. Nero glanced down at Lyall. He could tell that she was annoyed. Nero petted her head in a rhythmic pattern calming her. Raiein unsheathed Myoujou jumped over the table and proceed to hit them all with the blunt side of his katana. Kaiyou sighed and pulled out her dagger and attached a protected sleeve over the blade. She attached the chain to her dagger and walked out from behind the table. She started spinning the blade over her head. "Raiein!" Raiein ducked as the dagger flew over his head and hit the person in the back of the neck.

"Thanks!" Raiein shouted with a smile. Kaiyou pulled her dagger back and looked around. Nero stood up after putting blanks into his two pistols. He had left eye closed and started aiming at the unsuspecting attackers. Kaiyou swung her dagger to Raiein's left and it hit the person's pressure point. She caught her dagger and saw Nero attacking with blanks. Kaiyou blinked in surprise. Lyall was relaying anything that could hurt Nero. "Kaiyou, I've cleared a path. Let's go now!" Kaiyou nodded.

"Nero! Lyall! Come on, there are still some things that I wish to know!" Kaiyou yelled over the commotion and ran after Raiein. Nero and Lyall both shrugged and ran after the other two, of course after leaving payment for the damage done. The four of them ran through the city and returned to the weapon's store Kaiyou and Raiein were at earlier. Once the door was closed, they shut all the blinds and slid to the floor.

"Well, Aeris this is a surprise. Are you a man magnet or something?" Ethelinda said softly as she threw her and the two boys' towels.

"Well…not that I know of...Ethelinda. What the hell is wrong with this island?" Kaiyou replied tired. Ethelinda sat down on the chair leaning on the back rest.

"I'll merely tell you that this city is full of liars and crooks and what not. They like to monopoly the place. Only reason why I can exist here is that people all have a grudge against someone and need weapons to destroy their said grudge." Ethelinda said in reply. "Now who is this?" Kaiyou winced at the tone of her voice.

"These two are Rainier Nero and Ylva Lyall. Are you angry?" Kaiyou asked worried.

"I'm I angry? Do you think I'm angry? You brought a freaking Marine to my store! And you dare ask me if I'm angry. What do you think?" Ethelinda hissed annoyed. Kaiyou sighed. Nero stood there awkwardly with Lyall.

"I'm sorry! I didn't know you despised the Marines!" Kaiyou said in return. Raiein walked over to another chair and sat down watching the interaction with curiosity. "I just wanted to talk that was all! And then the annoying city decided to explode on me and started shooting as us!" Ethelinda waited until she calmed down from her shouting spree. Raiein pulled out his ear plugs, whenever he had put those in, and relaxed.

"They started shooting at you? I've heard rumors of certain things; care to hear me out Aeris?" Ethelinda said in calm reply. Kaiyou nodded slowly. "Then, take a seat, you too young man." Nero sat down in the chair next to him. Kaiyou jumped onto the counter and sat ready to listen. "First thing to address, you say any of this to your superiors then you'd better find yourself a grave and a coffin, understand?" Nero nodded quietly. Something about Ethelinda came off as if she would certainly go through with the threat. "Good. There is a group of people in this city that have a problem with all the people with fame and glory. You, in particular, have brought them aggravation." Ethelinda said while pointing at Nero. "I overheard a group of bandits talking about wanting to kill you or something; they'll try to makes it seem like an accident. Rumor also has it that your comrades might have paid them to kill you. I haven't gotten that information clarified or anything." Nero clenched his fists at the mention. Kaiyou's eyes twitched. "Also…" A ring from a nearby Den Den Mushi made Raiein jump in surprise. Ethelinda picked it up cautiously. "Hello?"

"Ethelinda? Where is Aeris?" A male voice asked worried.

"Silvanus? What's wrong? Aeris is right next to me." Ethelinda replied worried. Silvanus sighed in relief.

"About what happened earlier, Aeris needs to leave your island."

"What? Why now?" Ethelinda demanded angrily.

"ETHELINDA! Rear Admiral Zepour Lilura is coming to that island!" Silvanus yelled frustrated. "If you can, get her out of there as soon as possible." His voice was softer than before. "We promised them." Ethelinda sighed and rubbed her eyes suddenly tired.

"I'll tell her, but it's up to her whether or not to leave." Ethelinda replied tiredly. Kaiyou was standing next to her to try and hear the conversation. Ethelinda swatted her away like a fly. Kaiyou pouted and sat down next to Raiein. Nero's left eye widen with contempt. Lyall glanced up at Nero. His face returned to being passive and showed no emotions. Raiein sighed and glanced up at the ceiling as Ethelinda hung up the Den Den Mushi. Silence encompassed the room.

"Do you know about the Reaper of Morana?" Raiein asked softly breaking the silence. Ethelinda looked at him; an unusual emotion was playing in her eyes. Kaiyou refrained from speaking. Nero glanced over at the mention of the subject. He had heard about it before from some marines a few years back.

"I'd be lying if I said I did. I've heard that term before, but have never researched it myself. Rumors have it that the Reaper of Morana might be a gem or something high in value. You have to remember that this is all rumors. Nothing I tell you has concrete evidence." Ethelinda stated quietly. Myoujou grumbled in his sheath with annoyance. "Myoujou, don't get me started with you." Ethelinda hissed. Nero blinked in confusion.

"Who?" Nero interrupted.

"Lando's katana. Myoujou is its name, the damn bastard." Ethelinda mumbled irritated. "I should break it." Kaiyou blinked.

"Mah Ethelinda that wouldn't do Raiein any good." Kaiyou said calmly. "Could you please continue what you were telling us?" Ethelinda glanced at Kaiyou; her snake-like eyes seemed to soften.

"Aeris, could you leave the island as soon as possible?" Ethelinda replied delicately.

"No." Kaiyou stated plainly. Raiein peeked over at her.

"And why not?" Ethelinda said annoyed. Her eyes glared at her. Kaiyou brushed it off like it was dust.

"Simply because I don't feel like leaving." Kaiyou stated swiftly. Raiein chuckled softly. Nero blinked at the interaction confused. He couldn't seem to follow the conversation.

"Aeris." Ethelinda said sternly. "Please do me a favor and leave this island immediately." Her voice was cold and demanding. Kaiyou turned to look at her. Raiein felt his breath get caught in his throat. Kaiyou's golden eyes were darker than its usual hue.

"Don't tell me what to do. Now either you finish your earlier explanation, or I'm leaving the store." Kaiyou replied coldly. Ethelinda sighed softly and glanced at the two men in the room. Nero was still a bit confused. Raiein stared at her with his eyes somewhat closed.

"Fine, you're exactly like your father, stubborn as fucking hell!" Ethelinda replied briefly. "Now where was I? Oh that's right; there have been signs of rebellion the last couple of days. Men have been coming to buy weapons and the sort for the past few days. I sell it to them since I need to make a living. This might interest you Rainier; a young marine came into the shop yesterday, even though there is a blockade in place at the gates." Nero's left eye closed slightly. "He doesn't seem to know how to keep his mouth shut; kept blabbering away and grumbling to me about his distaste for a certain 'Hero' that basked in the glory of fame. He gave me quite a lot of interesting information."

"Talk about a blabbermouth. His superiors must not like him all that much." Raiein whispered irritated. Kaiyou remained silent and emotionless. Raiein noted that she looked almost like a porcelain doll staring at people.

"He did mention something about assassinating the 'Hero,' which happens to be you." Ethelinda stated calmly. There didn't seem to be a presence of worry in her voice. "He bought a rifle with a silencer if you wanted to know." Nero sighed softly and rose up. Raiein and Kaiyou glanced at him curiously.

"Not my problem." Nero stated plainly. Lyall stood up and nuzzled his hand.

"It will be." EtheOlinda specified steadily. Her eyes were sharp and her smirk held a snake-like characteristic to them. "The target of his attack isn't just you, you know. It has to do with that girl that lives on the outside of the city boundaries as well. I'm pretty sure you know who lives out there." Nero's body stiffened. "I can tell you where to find him if you wish." Raiein saw Nero's hands clench into fists. "What do you say?"

"No thanks. I'll take care of it myself." Nero replied fleetingly. Raiein stood up abruptly with the sound of the chair screeching against the floor resonated through the room.

"I'm leaving; I've had enough of this talk. All of you seem to like arguing. Kaiyou," she glanced over at him, "once you are ready to leave. Come find me." Kaiyou nodded. Raiein put his weapons in their rightful place, before opening the door and leaving the store. Ethelinda blinked and grumbled under her breath.

"Why am I always left with people like this? Curse you wherever you are!" Ethelinda mumbled irritated. Kaiyou sighed and got off of the counter.

"What will you do, Rainier?" Kaiyou stated plainly. Her quiet voice left an unsettling feeling in the pit of his stomach. Lyall growled protectively.

"I'll do what I want." Nero replied coldly. Lyall glanced up at Nero questioningly. Ethelinda's eyes squinted to a glare. Nero brushed it off and opened the door and disappeared. Lyall followed after him loyally. Kaiyou blinked solemnly, before turning to look at Ethelinda.

"Why would people want to kill him?" Kaiyou questioned out of curiosity. Ethelinda stared up at the ceiling; her eyes were out of focus.

"Grudges, revenge, hate; it could be anything really." Ethelinda glanced over at Kaiyou; her eyes looked tired, full of pain, and longing. Kaiyou tilted her head in confusion. Why was she showing her emotions? "Promise me something, Aeris."

"Well it depends on the promise." Kaiyou returned walking over to the shop window.

"Never live your life on those things alone. In fact, I want you to try to never live your life by those reasons at all. It will not give you a life of happiness; I can guarantee you that." Ethelinda stated tiredly. "Will you promise me that?"

"Do you expect me to want something like that?" Kaiyou stated quietly. "I don't live for things like that. I just want to travel the seas. It's where I feel most at home."

"I don't think you understand, Aeris. The world is much vaster then you'd expect. You don't know what will happen. Just because today, you don't live by those reasons doesn't mean that tomorrow you couldn't live by them." Ethelinda replied stonily.

"…." Kaiyou glanced at the sky from her spot. "Ethelinda…" She focused on Kaiyou. "I won't promise you that, but I'll try my best not to live by them." Silence hung in the room. Kaiyou turned over to her. "Tell me what you know about that marine."

"Which one did you mean? The one you came in with or the one that I was talking about?"

"I want to know about the one that you mentioned, and I want to know everything about him." Kaiyou replied silently. Ethelinda smirked and motioned her to follow.

"Somehow you remind me a lot of them. It shouldn't be such a surprise on my end though." Ethelinda whispered. The two walked into the back of the store. The room was empty, no doors or windows except the one they just walked through. Ethelinda walked to the center of the room and kicked the floor. A secret door opened revealing a staircase. Ethelinda grabbed the lantern that was hanging against the wall and started walking down. She stopped a few steps down, when Kaiyou didn't follow, and turned to look at her. "Are you coming?"

"What does this have to do with the marine?" Kaiyou asked skeptically. Ethelinda grinned widely; the light from the lantern casted dark shadows over the planes of her face.

"Do you want to know or not?" Ethelinda countered steadily. Kaiyou glanced down at her feet unsure. "What's wrong? You're hesitating."

"Somehow, I feel that if I continue to follow you down those stairs; I won't be able to return the life I had." Kaiyou replied softly. Ethelinda smiled gently. Kaiyou's eyes shone brightly against the lantern light.

"That is true, but you can go back anymore. Especially now since both your mother and father are dead. There is no place for you to go back to. If the sea is the only place, then you should trust your judgment and decide the next course of action; whether to know or not to know." Ethelinda replied knowingly. Kaiyou glanced at her and frowned.

"What do you mean I can't go back anymore? I could just take my boat and return to Aki no Fuyu." Kaiyou replied briefly. Ethelinda closed her eyes. Kaiyou glared at her.

"What I mean is that you no longer have the ability to choose to go back. It's only to go forward and in the many directions of the future. Where those paths lead, I do not know. All I know is that this "Reaper of Morana" is definitely involved in your destiny. It will continuously poke its ugly head into your path." Ethelinda replied sternly. Her eyes opened and she held out her hand. "Come on. The information you want to know and the item your father left me is down here." At the mention of the item, Kaiyou's attention perked up even more. Kaiyou took her hand and she led her down. "Be careful, the steps aren't very sturdy; not to mention it's quite dark."

"Ethelinda, what exactly was your relationship with my father?" Kaiyou asked as she carefully walked down the stairs. An empty chuckle could be heard from in front of her.

"I would say a friend and a comrade. He was a great man that cared for his friends deeply." Ethelinda replied softly. "Though I suppose Lancer never did tell you about his past did he?"

"Sadly, he never did, all he ever told me was that it would be better if I didn't know anything about him. I really want to know though. His secrets and why he never wished to tell me any of it." Kaiyou returned sadly. Ethelinda patted her on the head. She looked up at her.

"I'm sure in time; it will reveal itself to you." Ethelinda smiled. "The ocean is vast, and I'm sure the answers you seek will be along the path." Ethelinda lighted the lanterns as she went. As she reached the bottom of the stairs, she hit the switch and the room flooded with light. Ethelinda turned the lantern in her hand off. "Here we are." Kaiyou glanced around the room and saw aisles and aisles of books and boxes. There was a huge table in the middle of the room. "Feel free to browse the room, while I go find your father's item and that information you wanted." Ethelinda walked through the aisles. Kaiyou walked up to the first aisle and peeked at the books. The books in that first aisle were about gunpowder and how to make bombs. The next aisle was full of books on firearms and how they were made. Kaiyou sighed as she returned to the table and sat down. She was about to lay her head down when a book on the table grabbed her attention. The book was about transferring spirits from one weapon to another. Kaiyou opened it to the first page and read it. Ethelinda watched her from where she stood and smiled sadly before wiping that look off and returning to the table. She put the information she found on the table and the item from Lancer down. Kaiyou glanced up at her and closed the book. "You can keep it if you want. I have no use for a book like that."

"Are you sure? What if you need it in the future?" Kaiyou asked in return. Ethelinda smiled and nodded her to take it. Kaiyou put the book into her pouch.

"Here is the information you requested. I'm not sure it will help you in anyway, but it's all I have on him. Though I suppose, I'm more curious on why you wanted that information in the first place." Ethelinda stated while sliding over the papers in her hands. Kaiyou picked them up and scanned through them. "Aeris, what are you thinking in that brain of yours?

"I know that most Marines are not bad people, but lately the majority of the Marines I've met haven't exactly been…well friendly. I wanted to see why they would want to kill their so called Hero." Kaiyou replied softly while scanning the information. Ethelinda shook her head smirking; she glanced down at the object in her hands and her smirk disappeared. Kaiyou glanced up at the object in Ethelinda's hands and blinked.

_**Random Place, Loki, Maple Island**_

"Raiein, where are we going?" Myoujou practically shouted while startling Raiein. He took a deep breath in attempt to refrain from pouring the acid. "Raiein are you even listening to me?"

"Shut up will you?" Raiein said calmly as possible. He glanced around the city as he walked through the streets. He felt someone watching him but couldn't discern the person's location. "Kishin…" he whispered under his breath. Raiein heard his dagger hum quietly in reply. "Can you locate where they are?"

"No, but may I suggest something?" Kishin said softly. Raiein remained silent. "I suggest you take a corner and try to lose them, or you could take the corner and grab them as they go past you."

"Raiein, let's take the second option." Myoujou exclaimed excitedly. Raiein rolled his eyes while shaking his head.

"Bad idea, I don't want to cause any trouble so we're going with the first option." Raiein stated calmly before quickly running around the corner and disappearing into a store full of glass vases. He hid behind a pillar inside the store and peeked out the window. Raiein squinted his eyes as a group of men stopped in front of the store and started yelling among themselves. They all wore suits and sunglasses even though it was the evening.

"Where is he?"

"The boss is going to be angry with us!"

"Look for him, he couldn't have gone far!"

"What the hell? Raiein, what did you do? They're after you." Myoujou shouted loudly. The katana shook annoyed at his side. Raiein hit it with the palm of his hand, causing Myoujou to want to bite right back at him. Kishin merely ignored them and watched as the men ran off.

"We should get out of here. Something is definitely going down in this city." Kishin stated out of his observation. Raiein carefully walked outside and looked around. "We should head back."

"No, not yet; I need to check up on something."

"What in the bloody hell do you need to check on, you damn idiot of a master?" Myoujou screeched foully. Raiein closed his eyes and brought his hands to his ears in attempt to block out his sword's annoying voice.

"STOP SCREAMING!" Raiein returned loudly. He opened his eyes and saw the people staring at him weirdly. Some of them were whispering to each other. He brought his right hand to his face and sighed. "Well shit…"

"Nice going, idiot of a master." Myoujou said mockingly.

"Myoujou, zip your trap otherwise I'll find a way to kill you." Raiein replied grumpily. Kishin sighed under his breath at his master and his fellow weapon.

"Such child-like behavior; could we just go check on that whatever you wanted to check on and return to the store? I'm quite done listening to the both of you, not to mention I'm completely worried as to why we would suddenly be wanted by men in suits." Kishin stated calmly while managing to make Raiein relax and cool down. Raiein remained silent as he walked through the city. Myoujou glanced about the city while scanning the area to feel any hostile presences.

"Mind telling us what you wanted to check on?" Myoujou stated bored after sensing absolutely nothing dangerous. Raiein ignored him and continued walking toward the northern end of the city. The amount of citizens around him slowly diminished until it was merely him on the street. He glanced behind him and noticed all of the life and festivities were nowhere around him. "Yo, idiot master! Why are we here?" He was standing in the deserted part of the city. The buildings were a bit run down.

"Don't talk, Myoujou." Raiein responded seriously. "They're here." Raiein rested his hand on his katana. A group of men walked out in front of him. They were the same group that was chasing him. "Tch."

"Are you Lando Raiein; the son of the Spyro Pirates' First Mate Lando Reigh?" The man in the middle asked as he walked around Raiein slowly like a predator. He had blonde hair and very small black eyes. He was muscular but not to muscular.

"Why does it matter to you whose son I am?" Raiein inquired calmly, while following the man with his eyes.

"Answer my question, boy." He commanded sternly. Myoujou rolled his eyes in annoyance.

"I do believe I've already answered your question." Raiein replied bitingly. "How about you answer my questions then?"

"Keep your mouth shut boy! You will speak when I allow you to speak." He said angrily.

"You've already allowed me to speak when you told me to answer your damn question." Raiein stated obviously. Kishin vibrated in attempt to shut his master up. Raiein ignored him completely. Myoujou snickered quietly waiting for the chance to have some blood.

"Men, take him. I'll dig that information out of him." The man ordered. Raiein blinked and pulled out Myoujou in surprise.

"Raiein, don't kill them!" Kishin yelled out in worry. "We're not trying to get on their bad side." Raiein flipped the blade and ducked from a sudden punch aimed toward his face. He swung his sword into the man's abdomen. The force alone sent the man flying to the ground a few feet away.

"Shit…" Raiein slipped out as a man swung his leg into Raiein's chest. Raiein slid back gasping for air; his arm could barely hold onto Myoujou. Raiein glanced up when he noticed feet in his vision. A hand snatched his throat strongly. Raiein brought his left arm to seize the man's wrist as the man lifted him off the ground.

"Well well, I didn't realize that you were injured…perfect." The man's other hand clutched Raiein's injured arm roughly. Raiein clenched his jaw tightly.

"You damn idiot of a master! What the hell is wrong with you?" Myoujou yelled as Raiein allowed his left arm to fall down to his side. Raiein put his left hand over Kishin's hilt and pulled it out while aiming for the man's eyes. Raiein brought his feet up and kicked the man in the chest as he pulled back to avoid the dagger. Raiein back flipped and ended crouched with his weapons ready to attack. Raiein took a few breaths while keeping tabs on where everyone was. There was blood stained on his bandage. "Why the fuck are they attacking you, idiot master!"

"You are the son of Lando Reigh. You have to be his son. Those weapons belonged to Lando Reigh. I will take you back to my boss." The blonde man sneered out.

"It is because I am the son of Lando Reigh, Myoujou." Raiein returned quietly so the man in front of him didn't hear. "You knew this. You should have felt it since the incident in the restaurant."

BANG! BANG! BANG!

Raiein blinked and watched as all of the men around him fall down unconscious. Raiein turned toward the location of where the sound was coming from. A few feet away a man stood up with his sniper rifle over his shoulder and a very large wolf at his side.

"Well, you seem to bring a lot trouble with you Raiein." A smirk plastered on his face as he walked over to Raiein with the wolf in tow.

"Nero?"

"The one and only; what the hell did these guys want with you? They look like they were from the underground or something, not that I could really tell with these eyes of mine." Nero questioned while poking one of the guy's side with his right foot.

"I'm not quite sure why they wanted me. What are you doing here?" Raiein inquired softly as he sheathed his weapons. Kishin sighed in relief, while Myoujou rolled his eyes.

"I don't know. I really don't know, though I suppose it might have been Lyall here." Nero stated plainly as his hand moved to pet her.

"Shouldn't you be worrying about your problem with that marine, Nero?" Raiein stated as he remembered the conversation from earlier. Raiein brought his left hand to hold his throbbing right arm. Nero sighed softly and hoisted his sniper rifle on his back.

"I should, but I've figured that he doesn't have the courage to do something so drastic so soon."

"What about that person on the outskirts of the city?" Raiein inquired gently. Nero glanced up at the darkening sky.

"I gave her a call and told her about it. She should be fine, if I know her as well as I do." Nero replied. "We should go before these people wake up."

"Right." Raiein muttered and walked with Nero and Lyall back toward the city festivities. The three of them walked back in silence. Nero occasionally tried to feel Raiein's presence, but it kept fluctuating without staying constant and calm like other normal people.

"By the way, is she still at the store?" Nero suddenly inquired. Lyall nudged Nero's right hand while he started patting her head.

"I believe so…" Raiein replied quietly. Nero turned his head slightly and smiled gently.

"She's always hiding her emotions isn't she?" Nero stopped walking suddenly. Raiein stopped a few feet in front and turned to face the sniper and the wolf that was sitting next to him.

"I…" Raiein closed his mouth and exhaled slowly. He wasn't sure what to make of Kaiyou truthfully; one minute she's bubbly, then she's moody, and next she had just killed a man with a frighteningly calm straight face to boot. "I've just recently met her so I couldn't really say anything about that."

"She has a good heart, even if she hides it." Nero answered while bringing his hand to his right eye. A painful howl echoed from Nero's side. Raiein and Nero both glanced down at the wolf. Lyall whimpered and snapped her head to her right. "Lyall what's wrong?" She merely bit down gently on Nero's sleeve and motioned to her right that led to an alleyway. Raiein squinted to the area that Lyall was motioning for. Raiein grabbed Nero's arm with his left hand before Nero took his second step toward the alleyway.

"Wait, something's there." He stated with narrowed eyes.

_**Mayor's Office, Loki, Maple Island**_

"Why haven't you brought me the son of Lando Reigh and the Hero of Eydis?" The mayor hissed angrily. He paced around his desk. His secretary stood calmly to the side.

"We're very sorry sir. We didn't expect to the two of them to team up and resist us." The mayor swung a cane across the man's face. He fell to the floor in pain. The mayor had the two men remove the man on the ground out of the room.

"I told you that the Hero of Eydis wasn't going to be easy to catch. Not to mention you also wanted the son of a former pirate." A man stated calmly from the back of the room. He was wearing the standard Marine uniform.

"I didn't think they'd be at the same place at the same time, nor did I expect them to know each other." The mayor retorted in reply. The secretary resisted the urge to roll her eyes at the mayor's stupidity. The marine scoffed from his spot. The door on the marine's right opened and the atmosphere in the room dropped to a freezing temperature. The marine widened his eyes in surprise before quickly saluting the sudden guest. The guest merely waved it off and walked inside the room. The clacking sound from the guest's military boots vibrated throughout the room. The marine felt cold sweat running down the back of his neck at the air that surround and emitted from the guest. The secretary merely smiled sweetly and saluted the guest. The guest sat down in one of the couches and crossed one of their legs over the other.

"I was beginning to wonder when you would get here. The men in this place are just idiots in their own rights." The secretary stated calmly while relaxing and sitting down on the armrest of another couch facing the guest. "I suppose the Reaper of Morana wasn't at Laqueus was it."

"No, but I have a feeling that my Reaper of Morana might be on this island as we speak. However, that topic is for another time. Right now, I want information on Lando Reigh's son. After all, it is a family duty to protect it the Reaper of Morana." The guest's sweet voice echoed strongly through the room.

"We've spotted someone close to the description of his son within the city walls. We believed that he came here by boat therefore we didn't catch him at the gates. However it seems to us that he might have brought along a friend since we found him walking with a young female with blackish-blue hair with maroon highlights. Her eyes are gold…" The secretary was interpreted by the guest suddenly.

"Did you say a young female with blackish-blue hair?"

"Yes Ma'am." The secretary replied in confusion. The guest smirked in happiness as a hand went to brush her long scarlet hair over her shoulders. Her reddish-pink eyes shined brightly with delight. She was garbed in a dark grey two button suit with a white tank top underneath and matching pants. Her stylist boots went up to her knees. Her marine officer's jacket was draped around her shoulders.

"Do you have a photo of her?" The marine that was standing in the back of the room walked over and handed her a photo. "Thank you." She glanced down at the photo and started laughing. The occupants of the room shuddered in fear. "I finally found you. After all these years, I've finally found you." Lilura whispered under her breathe.

"Rear Admiral Zepour Lilura?" The marine questioned quietly.

"Do you know of this girl's current location?" Lilura inquired threateningly her reddish-pink eyes held an unusual glint in them. The marine nodded and glanced over at the secretary, Margrinet. She smiled knowingly.

"She's at the weapons store in the dark district. We've seen her going there a few times. She hasn't left since the last report that was given a few moments before you arrived." Margrinet stated calmly. The mayor was standing with his back against the wall scared for his life.

"Perfect. Let's hope that Lando's son is also there. Then I'll be killing two birds with one stone." Lilura said with a silent ease while standing up. "Lead the way. The sooner I see if it really is her, the better." The marine saluted and walked over to the door. Margrinet smiled at the marine sweetly before returning her attention to her boss. The marine led Lilura through the city of festivities. "Your name and rank soldier?"

"Brin Demon, Master Chief Petty Officer, Ma'am." He replied stiffly. Lilura smiled roguishly and continued toward the weapons store. "Could I ask you why you want to see this girl?"

"You could ask, but you won't get an answer from me that is for sure. Tell me about our little Hero won't you?" Lilura questioned sternly. Demon smiled and nodded.

"I'll tell you anything about him. He wears an eye patch over his right eye and has been stated by our doctors that he is completely blind. Of course only few members at the base know of this complication in his health." Demon watched Lilura from the corner of his eye as he told her, trying to judge what was going through her head. "The Ensign doesn't quite like him and he doesn't make it subtle that he doesn't either. Our little Hero knows who dislikes him."

"Oh… how interesting. He is one of your best shooters though isn't he? I'm sure you have a dislike for him as well." Lilura stated calmly. Demon blinked in surprise before shrugging it off and continuing toward the store with Lilura in tow.

_**Weapons Store, Maple Island – Evening**_

Kaiyou stared at the item in Ethelinda's hand. It was an elegant silver key that was emitting a dark purple color. Ethelinda glanced up at Kaiyou trying to gauge her reaction to seeing the key. Kaiyou blinked and looked at Ethelinda in the eyes.

"My father left a key with you?" Kaiyou asked in disbelief. Ethelinda chuckled softly with a hint of sadness and opened Kaiyou's hand and put the key in her hand.

"I'm sorry Aeris…." Ethelinda muttered under her breathe as Kaiyou fell into her arms unconscious. "I…We have sworn to protect you even if it would cost us our lives." Ethelinda picked up the key and smiled at it sadly. "I'm sorry, Lancer. I didn't want to use this key on her. Hopefully you can forgive me for restoring painful memories to her. After all those memories should have been locked away for good…." Ethelinda gently laid Kaiyou on the bench and wrapped a blanket around her. She walked toward the stairs and took a glance at Kaiyou before going up the stairs. "Please watch over her Lancer, Reigh." Once she got to the top floor, she quickly closed the entry to the secret room and put a rug over the floor. Ethelinda sighed as she walked toward the store front and grabbed a few weapons of her choice. The door opened suddenly and Ethelinda plastered a fake smile onto her face. "Welcome, how can I help you?" Ethelinda felt her eyes widen a little bit at the person that stood at the door.

"So this is the store that young girl is at?" A womanly voice resounded through the room.

"Rear Admiral Lilura, this is definitely the place that I was told." Demon replied in return. Ethelinda clenched her hands to form fists.

"Well, we meet again Klytié. Eileifr Silvanus back at Laqueus put up a good fight. Do you still have that venomous bit of yours Klytié Ethelinda?"

"Zepour Lilura, Rear Admiral of the World Government. What do I owe the pleasure of your visit?" Ethelinda venomously bit out all the while smiling.

"I believe you already know why I'm here, Klytié. Therefore, how about we drop the formalities and hand over the girl with blackish-blue hair." Lilura sneered while walking inside and letting Demon close the door behind them.

"I don't have a clue on what you're talking about. I don't have anyone else in this store. I'm the only one here before you walked in." Ethelinda replied calmly, while her heart betrayed her as it was beating at irregular pace.

A/N: I'M ALIVE! I do believe the last time most of you heard from me was like back in January or sometime around there! As an apology for neglecting this story for so long, I wrote this chapter a bit longer than usual. Okay I jest; it is extremely long; if the word count is anything to go by. Tell me what you think of this part. I was going to finish it this chapter but realized that it would have been extremely long.

Really I'm sorry for not uploading a Blackroot Pirates chapter in such a long time. Hopefully this one gives you something to make up for such a lost in time. Oh and if you have any questions or anything of the sort that you'd like to ask any of us, feel free to message us or leave us a review and we'll get to the answer in the next chapter. Thank you for your continued support.


	26. Blackroot Pirates Chapter 3 Part 4

Disclaimer: We do not own One Piece in anyway.

_Maple Island's Final Party_

Ethelinda glared at Lilura as she walked over and inspected the room looking for that 'young girl.' Demon watched Ethelinda as Lilura sauntered up to her.

"Klytié, where is the girl?" She whispered seducing. Ethelinda merely smirked venomously and spitted in her face.

"I don't know, and even if I did I wouldn't tell you whore." Lilura glared at her while wiping the spit off her face.

"It seems to me that you still don't know your place in the world, Klytié. I could capture you and send you to the government on a golden platter and you'd be executed for your piracy. After all, you are still an unwanted criminal in our eyes." Lilura sneered. Ethelinda started laughing. Demon watched the proceedings with confusion. What was going through that woman's brain?

"You think the Marines could capture me? I'm still good at what I did back then. Don't you dare think that this inactivity from piracy would make my abilities rust. I'm still quite a fighter, Zepour." Ethelinda bit back venomously. Her cream eyes shining brightly.

"I have no doubt, Klytié; however I haven't been sitting on my ass all day, these past few years. So please spare me the trouble of beating you up and hand the girl over." Lilura scorned annoyed. Ethelinda smirked and threw a knife at her head. Lilura dodged it and glared at the woman in front of her. "Well, it seems to me that you have made your decision." Lilura ran at Ethelinda while throwing punches and kicks while Ethelinda dodged or returned one of her own attacks. Demon tilted his head and threw his hands up into the air exasperated.

"I hate it when women fight, fish sticks!" Demon muttered under his breath.

_**Random Place, Loki, Maple Island **_

Nero tried to feel for a presence but only felt Lyall, Raiein, and his owns. Raiein brought out Myoujou and waited. There was an angry snarl and Raiein was felt himself hit the ground painfully. Myoujou was inside a mouth with teeth. Nero stood shocked for a second before pulling out his pistols and shooting the thing. Lyall bit the thing's legs while Raiein tried to blink out the pain coming from the back of his head.

"Hello again!" was a cat-like voice. Raiein blinked and glanced at the thing that was on him. His eyes widened in surprise.

"Raiein, it's that damn cat demon again!" Myoujou yelled out frustrated.

"Get off…of me…you damn…cat!" Raiein shouted through gasps before he kicked it away. Nero pointed his gun at the human and pulled Raiein to his feet with his other hand. Raiein stood up shakily. Pain shot through his arm which promptly made him drop Myoujou into the dirt, blade first. Nero and Lyall kept themselves focused on the cat demon in front of them. "Urgh."

"Raiein, what's wrong?" Nero asked while trying to get a presence on the demon in front of him. Raiein's legs gave out from under him and he fell to his knees. "Raiein!"

"Fuck! Kishin do something you asshole!" Myoujou yelled in panic. Kishin sighed softly knowing that he could do absolutely nothing. The cat demon ran at the trio. Lyall attacked back.

"Nero help him. I'll keep this cat busy." Lyall telepathically ordered. Nero nodded and turned to face Raiein.

"Raiein, hey can you hear me?" Nero knelt down to Raiein. Nero grabbed Raiein's arm gently and felt a sticky substance on his fingers. Nero brought it to his nose and smelled it. "You're bleeding." Raiein glanced up at Nero and past him unsteadily. Sweat stuck to his forehead as he gasped for air.

"Raiein, that demon needs to be killed. It must have injected something into your blood stream." Kishin stated calmly, Myoujou was rattling in the ground next to him in panic.

"Urgh!" Raiein gripped his arm as pain shot through it again. Nero brought a steady hand to Raiein's shaking shoulder.

"Raiein." Nero brought a cloth out and did temporary first aid to Raiein's bleeding arm.

"I…have…to…urgh…kill…that…cat…." There was a sudden laughter. Nero glanced behind him and noticed Lyall on guard. Raiein gasped as another wave of pain shot through.

"I'm glad it works. I'm Isoba Draven, First Mate of the Nautilus Pirates, remember it." The cat demon stated before disappearing into the darkness. Nero suddenly heard a thump next to him and his attention snapped to Raiein, who lay unconscious at his feet. His blood had already gone completely through Nero's temporary first aid bandages.

"Lyall, we have to get him back to the shop. That snake woman must have a first aid kit on her." Lyall nodded and walked over to Raiein. Nero gently draped him over her broad shoulder and back. "I'll clean your fur so no worries." Lyall rolled her eyes as Nero picked up Myoujou and sheathed him. "Let's go." Raiein's blood was dripping down his arm to his fingertips. Drops of his blood fell to the ground. Nero and Lyall quickly rushed toward the store.

_**Underneath the Store**_

Kaiyou moaned as she slept. Sweat matted her forehead and the back of her neck.

_Kaiyou glanced around her. This isn't the store she was just in, where was she? There was lust greenery all around her. She glanced around and saw her papa standing there talking to someone with black maroon hair and golden eyes. However something was off, something was different. Her eyes widened as she realized that her papa was merely a small boy at least four or five at most. They were talking but Kaiyou couldn't hear anything they were saying. A beautiful young woman of twenty years ambled up to them. Her hair was white and her eyes were a violet red. Kaiyou took a hesitant step forward. She walked until she was close enough to hear what they were saying. _

"_Lancer, Izrail are you two busy?" Her voice was sweet and gentle. The two boys shook their heads and smiled brightly. "That's good. I need to tell you two something important."_

"_Okay." The woman smiled weakly and glanced up at the sky._

"_In the future, there will be someone you'll have to absolutely protect no matter what. She must not fall into the wrong hands. You need to keep her away from the people of the World Government and people that want her for any reason. She should be allowed to choose her own path. People will want to use her."_

"_How can we tell if it is her?" The boy, Izrail, with black maroon hair asked with curiosity. _

"_You will know. She'll just radiate strength. Protect her. Just like my guardians, are protecting me." The woman replied gently. Lancer glanced at the sky with wonder._

"_Is something going to happen to you?" Lancer asked quietly. The woman glanced down at Lancer and smiled gently. _

"_I hope not. Do remember what I told you alright?" They both nodded swiftly. "If you can't protect her yourself, then find some people that you trust and ask them to help you." _

"_My lady! There you are! What were you thinking, running off without one of us?" A man yelled furious. The boys glanced up and their mouths dropped. It was the woman's most loyal guardian. He was a tall man with blonde hair and blue eyes. She smiled weakly as he stalked up the hill to where she stood with Lancer and Izrail._

"_I'm sorry, my dear friend. I just needed to tell these boys something." She replied calmly. The woman smiled and told the boys goodbye and left with her guardian. Kaiyou watched as she walked off and turned to the two boys, who were suddenly grabbed by two grown male adults that started running toward the shore. Kaiyou tried to run after them but couldn't. The next moment, Kaiyou was next to the woman that stood calmly with tears staining her pale face. Her guardians were fighting something. Kaiyou couldn't make it out that well. "Please protect those boys for they will play an important role in the future." _

"_Well, we finally found you little miss Reaper of Morana." The woman spun around and came face to face with a man with honey blond hair with stormy grey eyes. His shoulder length hair covered his left eye. His most prominent feature was his pointy ears and rosy pale skin. He looked no more than twenty years old. "I've searched for you for decades." Kaiyou gasped as she remembered seeing that man's face before. He was the one that order the White Russian back in Laqueus. _

"_You! I won't let you get what you want." She stated calmly. _

"_Oh, but you will. I already have your guardians dead after all." The woman gasped and glanced around and saw them all dead. She started shaking in fear, but calmed herself and turned to face the man. Kaiyou noticed the determined look that glinted in her eyes._

"_I'm afraid that you won't be getting what you wanted. The Reaper of Morana will die today!" Before the man could stop her, she stabbed her own heart. She fell to the ground. The man growled with frustration._

"_Fine, I won't get the Reaper of Morana in this generation, but I'll definitely get her in the next one." He growled out and walked off, leaving the woman to lay in her own blood. _

"_I hope the next one to carry the name of Reaper of Morana, please live life as you wish and don't allow people to control you. Please live freely for me and most of all for yourself." The woman prayed on her last breath. Kaiyou stood there shocked at what just happened. _

"_What is this? A memory? But it's not mine! It can't be mine! I wasn't even born yet! What is going on? I don't understand what this Reaper of Morana is!" Kaiyou felt pain go through her head; she gripped her head in pain as she fell to her knees. "Make it stop, make it stop!" Kaiyou felt tears escaping as she curled up into a ball. "Papa! Mama! Help me!" _

_**At the Same Time as Kaiyou's Dream**_

Ethelinda managed to get Lilura and Demon away from her own store. Ethelinda quickly ran around the city in hopes of losing her two tails. She hid behind a group of people that smiled at her. They usually hid her if something happened. Lilura and Demon walked right pass her and she released her breath that she didn't realize she was even holding.

"Get yourself into trouble again, Ethelinda?" One of the males asked once Lilura and Demon were gone far enough.

"Yeah, I hate it when they don't leave me alone." Ethelinda muttered softly. The male laughed whole heartedly.

"You better get going before they come back." Ethelinda nodded and waved goodbye. She took the long route back to her store in case someone was still on her tail. She opened her door and closed it behind her, locking it in one fluid motion. Ethelinda went into the back room and brought out a mop to clean up the blood that managed to spill onto the floor. After cleaning it all up she went looking for her first aid kit and put a bandage on her cheek over the wound. Ethelinda glanced up at the door at the sound of knocking. She walked over to the door while picking up a dagger and glanced through the peep hole and saw Nero. She opened the door hesitantly and was shocked to find Raiein on Lyall's back. She ushered the trio in and locked the door.

"Lay him down on the couch." Ethelinda ordered as she put the dagger down and went over to her first aid kit. "What happened?"

"He was ambushed I believe. Not sure what happened to his arm though." Nero replied as he put Raiein down on the couch. Raiein was still gasping for air but it wasn't as bad as it was back with the cat demon around. Nero took Myoujou and Kishin off and sat them against the wall. "He was pretty tried from the ambush so he couldn't really fight against that second attack by the pirate." Ethelinda brought her first aid kit over and started working on the wound on his arm.

"Kishin, explain in detail why he's like this." Ethelinda asked the dagger. Kishin was silent for a few moments.

"Before we arrived at this island, we had an encounter with some pirates. The first mate just happened to be a demon cat and he bit Raiein's arm. I suppose he must have injected Raiein with something through his teeth. It was fine earlier, just blood coming out. But that stopped as soon as it hit salt water. It started to give him pain and this crazy bleeding when that demon cat returned a few minutes ago." Kishin explain in almost one breath. Ethelinda was going to say something but a scream echoed through the store. Nero glanced over at Ethelinda.

"Nero, do me a favor. Go into the other room and lift the rug up. There should be a hidden door that leads to a room where I keep my important stuff. Aeris should be down there. Wake her up, but be careful. She might hit you in retaliation." Nero started going into the other room. "Oh and try to comfort her for me. She might be a bit emotional." Nero nodded and left the room. Lyall stayed in the room and started cleaning her fur of little red spots. Ethelinda removed the blood stained jacket and took a look at Raiein's bleeding arm. There were bite marks and it was bleeding quite badly. Ethelinda brought out some iodine and went to get some water and a cloth to clean the wound. Ethelinda brought a cold cloth to his wound and heard him hiss and bolt upright suddenly. She blinked at the sudden movement. Raiein blinked the blurriness from his eyes and glanced around the room alert before relaxing. "You alright there?"

"…Ethelinda?" His voice was a bit raspy from his breathing. Ethelinda nodded and pointed toward his arm. He allowed her to clean the blood and give it proper treatment before bandaging it up. "How?"

"Nero brought you back."

"And Kaiyou?"

"Nero's fetching her as we speak." Raiein glanced down at his arm and sighed slowly if not a bit tiredly. "They should be coming up soon." Nero walked down the stairs into a brightly lit room and felt Kaiyou's presence and walked over to her. He gently shook her awake. He heard her gasp and sit up suddenly. She glanced around her and looked at Nero questioningly. Nero merely helped her stand up.

"Are you done here?" Nero asked gently. Kaiyou nodded and turned to gather her stuff, the book and her notes. Nero led her up the stairs. Kaiyou remained silent as memories from a past she didn't live enter her mind. She shook her head to clear her thoughts. Nero glanced behind him slightly; Kaiyou's presence was shaking. He stopped before reaching the top of the stairs. Kaiyou walked right into him. Nero grabbed her arm before she fell down the stairs. "I don't know what happened to you down there, but you decide what happens and who you are. Do you understand?" Kaiyou glanced up at Nero slowly. Nero blinked a few times before he realized that Kaiyou was visibly shaking. "Kaiyou?" Nero sighed softly and put a hand on her head. "Hey, it will be alright. You'll be fine."

"Nero…what is the Reaper of Morana?" Kaiyou asked dejectedly. Nero let his hand return to his side.

"Rumor has it that the Reaper of Morana is greatly sought person, not a gem or a stone. The Rear Admiral Zepour Lilura is known for wanting to find the person. Others look for the person because they believe that the Reaper of Morana could restore life." Nero stated calmly.

"How do you know all of that?"

"Being an outcast sometimes makes a person keen on rumors and gossip. Not to mention I have good hearing." Nero replied while studying Kaiyou's presence. It had stopped shaking badly, it was now a mere tremor. "You good to go?" Kaiyou nodded slowly. "That's good, because I think Raiein could use a sense of normalcy." Kaiyou perked up.

"Did something happen?" Kaiyou asked as she followed Nero up the final stretch of stairs.

"He was ambushed and then attacked by a pirate. You better ask him for the details." Nero replied as he walked into the main room after closing the hidden room door and covering it. When the two arrived, Ethelinda simply strode over to them.

"Hey, Aeris, Nero. Raiein's giving me the silent treatment. I've patched his wound up but he doesn't seem to want to tell me what happened exactly. Kishin gave me the brief version of it but…." Ethelinda trailed off before closing her mouth. Kaiyou peeked over at where Raiein was sitting quietly. She studied his eyes and saw the dullness again. Kaiyou turned her attention over to his weapons that sat on the other end of the room. Kaiyou paced over to them and sat down. She heard them stir lightly.

"Myoujou, Kishin…" Kaiyou whispered tiredly. Myoujou ignored her and remained silent. Kishin hummed in response. "What is going on?"

"We…" Kishin stopped talking. Nero and Ethelinda watched from the other side of the room. Lyall was at Nero's feet napping. "We did not see it." Kishin paused in thought. "We are tools to protect our master, even if some of us argue and annoy the shit out of them." Kaiyou smiled gently.

"I see now. Myoujou, Kishin, you two may be tools to protect Raiein, but you forget that he is the one that wields you. You can't move yourselves and rely on him to move. It just means that he has not mastered using you guys. So don't blame yourselves, he's already blaming himself for his own weakness." Myoujou sighed softly.

"I suck as a tool for him." Myoujou stated calmly. "I panicked." Kaiyou stood up.

"Don't worry. Everything will work out." Kaiyou left the two weapons to themselves and went over to Raiein. He was spaced out so when she put a hand on his shoulder, he jumped in shock. "Hey, Raiein. Can I sit here?" Raiein glanced up to her. His dull eyes stared at her before nodding slowly. Kaiyou sat down in front of him. He returned his attention to the world outside the window. "Raiein, are you alright?"

"Splendid." Raiein replied sarcastically. Kaiyou sighed, taking a deep breath before….a smack sound echoed loudly through the store. Nero and Ethelinda both blinked in surprise as they weren't expecting Kaiyou to do that. Raiein's eyes were wide in shock a hand was on his throbbing cheek as he stared at Kaiyou. "Wha…." Kaiyou's eyes were stern with annoyance.

"I don't need you to give me sarcastic responses. When I ask such questions, I usually expect honest answers. For one, how do you expect me to help if you don't tell me what is wrong?" Kaiyou stated sternly like a mother scolding her child. Lyall glanced at the interaction with curiosity. "For goodness sakes, I can tell when something is on your mind! What do you take me for, a small child?" Kaiyou stated when Raiein didn't answer her. Raiein blinked as the words sunk in. Kaiyou's face was flushed due to her yelling spree.

"I…I'm sorry. I just…" Raiein started without thinking fully. "I wasn't really thinking." Kaiyou sat down again and tried getting her breathing to normal.

"I'm sorry for yelling and smacking you like that…. I was annoyed with the fact that you keep doing this to me. Like back on the boat, when I first woke up." Kaiyou stated quietly. Raiein put a hand on her head.

"Thanks for worrying. I'll be fine." Ethelinda clapped and smiled at the two as they glared at her.

"Good graces, I was wondering when that was going to end." Ethelinda's smile disappeared as she turned serious. "We need to talk. If I'm right, then you two need to leave this island as soon as possible." Ethelinda sat down on a crate. "It seems to me that you two are being targeted by some very annoying people. Raiein, I have a feeling that the group chasing you might be the city underground. Their leader is the mayor or rather it's the secretary, Margrinet. She's the mastermind behind the majority of the incidents involving the underground. Also, I believe the Marines are in on it. No offense Nero." Nero merely shook his head. "Rear Admiral Zepour Lilura was here before Nero brought you back. She was looking for the Reaper of Morana." Kaiyou stiffen at the mention. Nero noticed and put it away for a later time.

"Ethelinda… do you really know nothing about the Reaper of Morana?" Kaiyou asked hesitantly. Ethelinda's eyes stared at Kaiyou's, before sighing in defeat.

"I apologize for lying before. I do know about the Reaper of Morana. Did you see something while you were sleeping?"

"Yes…" Kaiyou said slowly. Raiein listened intently.

"I guess the Reaper didn't tell you directly." Ethelinda leaned back and starred at the ceiling. "The Reaper of Morana is a person. That pale woman you saw was the former Reaper. Lancer told us that she was a very kind woman, but was burdened with the title of Reaper of Morana. I'll tell you the one thing I know for sure, Lancer and Izrail told me that you were the new Reaper of Morana." Raiein glanced over at Kaiyou as the information sunk in. Ethelinda gazed at her watching for her reaction. Nero and Lyall both stared understanding now the reason for her unique presence.

"I'm…the…" Kaiyou whispered shocked. Raiein caught Kaiyou as she fainted. Ethelinda took a deep breath and stood up.

"Her father knew this but didn't tell her?" Raiein asked as he laid her down. Ethelinda walked over to the key that she left under the cashier.

"We all knew. Even your own father knew, Raiein. You know that bartender back on your home island? He also knew about the Reaper of Morana and how it was now her." Ethelinda whispered quietly and sadly. "It was our promise."

"We? Our?" Raiein questioned as he went over to his weapons and strapped them on.

"The Spyro Pirates. A pirate crew dedicated to protecting the Reaper of Morana and allowing the one that carries the name to live a life they wish to live. It's just that there are not a lot of us left." Ethelinda replied while twirling the key in her hand. Nero glanced down at Lyall, who looked at Nero.

"I should get going. If you're still here after I deal with my business I don't mind talking some more." Nero stated calmly and went to the door. Lyall followed him. Raiein watched him leave. The door shut behind him and left the room in a heavy silence.

"Was it alright to say all of that stuff in front of Nero?" Raiein asked after a little thought. Ethelinda shrugged and walked over to Raiein.

"Somehow, I believe he's a trustworthy marine. Raiein take care of this key for me. I'm not sure what it opens but it gave Aeris some memories that most likely put her into an emotional train wreck." Raiein took the key and stared at it.

"Sure." Ethelinda watched as Raiein put it into one of his pockets.

_**Loki, Maple Island – Late Evening, Beginning of Festivities**_

Nero walked calmly toward where he was to meet Margrinet. The woman in question looked up at him and smiled brightly. Lyall remained silent and kept her guard up. She didn't trust this woman one bit.

"Mr. Rainier, I was worried when I didn't find you in your room. Not to mention I was told that there were towels stained with blood. You aren't injured are you?"

"I'm quite fine. That blood did not belong to me." Nero stated calmly. His right eye pulsed gently under his eye patch. Nero's fingers twitched in urge to touch his eye. He mentally cursed as pain shot through his eye. "I had a speech to say didn't I?"

"Yes, I've brought it here." She handed him the paper. Nero took it and brought his fingers over it to make sure it was the right one. Margrinet smiled a fake smile. Lyall caught her and whispered telepathically to Nero.

"She's up to something. You best be on your guard, Nero." Nero hummed telepathically in response while focusing on the paper in his hand.

"It's different." Nero muttered out quietly. Margrinet blinked in surprise. She looked through her paperwork in search for another one.

"I'm sorry, but that should be the same one." Margrinet said calmly. "I don't have any other copy." Nero remained silent as he continued to move his finger over the letterings. "You were a bit tired after all."

"Where will I be saying this?" Nero stated calmly, Lyall brushed her nose against his pants. He brought a hand to her head to tell her he knows.

"Over there." Margrinet pointed at the stage across the way. Nero mentally sighed. Lyall snickered and told him the direction of the stage. Margrinet walked him over to it and they stood watching as the entire city came to hear his planned speech. It was a full twenty minutes later, that Nero went up to the stage with Lyall in tow. On the roof of the tall building across from the stage was Brin Demon with the Rear Admiral Lilura. Demon had his weapon trained on Nero, while Lilura had a pair of binoculars searching the crowd for the girl.

_**Weapons Store, Loki, Maple Island – A few minutes earlier**_

Ethelinda cleaned her store up a bit and glanced at the sleeping duo. Raiein was sleeping with his back against the wall, while Kaiyou was asleep a little ways away. Myoujou had remained silent for most of the time since returning. Kishin hummed a comforting tune that Ethelinda remembered from her past. She walked over to the dagger and Kishin stopped and focused on her.

"It's been a long time since I've heard that tune." Ethelinda said softly. Kishin sighed.

"It's a comforting tune to Raiein. Especially since he's been tense since he returned." Kishin muttered quietly. Ethelinda smiled gently.

"He is defiantly his father's son. Reigh and Sena raised him well." Kishin smirked.

"Of course. I wouldn't have a bad master and you know that." Kishin stated calmly. Ethelinda leaned against her counter silently.

"I know it might sound mean, but I sort of want to wake them up to see the festival before they leave." Ethelinda stated quietly and not too loud. Raiein slowly blinked his eyes open. Kaiyou opened her eyes to stare at Raiein's eyes. They were no longer dull. Kaiyou sat up abruptly and saw Ethelinda. She blinked at the two and sighed smiling.

"Festival? Raiein, let's go to this festival that she was just talking about." Kaiyou said softly. Raiein merely rubbed the sleep out of his eyes and nodded. Kaiyou tilted her head questioningly. Raiein stood up while walking over to her. He extended his hand; she grabbed it as he pulled her up. Ethelinda continued to smile at the duo. Kaiyou stretched as Raiein put his weapons in their rightful places. "So Ethelinda, where do we go to see this festival?"

"It's close to the city hall. I would recommend that you two be careful while out there. After all, you two are wanted people here." Ethelinda reminded them as Kaiyou nodded and opened the door. Raiein put a hand on her shoulder and told her to wait outside. Ethelinda waited patiently as the door clicked closed.

"Ethelinda, she…."

"Please protect her Raiein. It's time we, Spyro Pirates, passed the torch anyway. Your father would be proud of you." Ethelinda stated calmly. A sad smile was plastered on her face.

"Of course. Plus, the two of us have an unspoken mission anyway." Raiein replied without much thought.

"Thank you and I'm sorry for everything." Ethelinda said softly. Raiein looked away.

"Sorry for what?"

"How I treated you earlier. That was just rude of me." Raiein shook his head.

"No worries. We'll be back later." Raiein replied and walked out the door. Ethelinda watched them go and sighed while walking over to her Den Den Mushi. She grabbed a bottle of alcohol and rang up Silvanus.

"Hello?" The voice on the other end questioned.

"Hey, it's me." Ethelinda said while taking a sip of her beverage. Okay it was a gulp a long gulp at that. She heard a light chuckle.

"You getting yourself drunk? It's been a few years hasn't it?" Silvanus stated calmly. Ethelinda hissed at him.

"I needed it after all. She knows now…." Ethelinda muttered loud enough. Silvanus was silent, before Ethelinda heard that annoying sigh that she was so used to.

"Does he know too then?" Silvanus questioned quietly. Ethelinda heard the squeak of the glass cup.

"Yeah. He's old enough to know about his father's past, you know."

"Did you tell her about Izrail being…?"

"No. I believe that is not information I should blurt out like that." Ethelinda replied while taking a drink. She could see Silvanus shaking his head on the other end. "…Sena is alright now right?"

"She's fine now. It's been years after all. She's had years to handle her loss." His voice was gentler then Ethelinda remembered. "How are you doing then?" Ethelinda blinked at the question.

"I'll be fine. We're old. It's time to let the youngsters carry our torch." Ethelinda muttered quietly. Silvanus chuckled on the other end.

"Yes, life has continued to move forward. It's time they carry their own burdens."

_**Loki, Maple Island**_

Raiein and Kaiyou walked toward the city hall or where the festival was. Raiein was on guard the entire time. Kaiyou walked oblivious to her surroundings in some sort of trance. Raiein could only assume that it was due to the information she just found out. Myoujou and Kishin whispered to each other quietly. Raiein couldn't hear them that well, so he ignored them. The duo walked quietly toward the loud festival.

"Ma'am, why are you smiling like that?" Demon questioned softly while adjusting his rifle. Lilura removed her binoculars from her eye level.

"I found her, along with Reigh's son." Lilura whispered in a seducing voice. Demon blinked as his face flushed making him focus on the targets.

"Ma'am, I'm quite surprised that you're letting me do this. After all, isn't he a decorated military hero?" Demon probed while aiming at Nero. Lilura snickered softly.

"Personally, I don't care what you do. If you get caught by anyone, I'm just going to act like I don't know you. Therefore, if the military sends you to court; I will not bail you out or even say a word about you. You shall take the punishment that you would have deserved." Lilura said with a huge smile on her face. Demon sweat-dropped and tried to return his focus to Nero.

"You're seriously a very scary woman sometimes…." Demon muttered under his breath. She merely glanced over at him with a tilt of her head all innocently. Demon shivered at the look. Lilura glanced through the binoculars again and searched for Kaiyou and Raiein. She smiled when she spotted the two of them. Kaiyou's eyes were staring at the ground. Suddenly Lilura noticed that Kaiyou's golden eyes were staring right at her. Lilura smiled wider at the look she got from them.

"Oh that's quite a magnificent glare you're giving me, my dear Reaper." Lilura purred softly. Raiein studied Kaiyou as she glared into the sky. Raiein sighed softly and looked at the stage. Raiein's eyes widened in surprise. Nero was standing on the stage, yet Raiein felt something was off. Raiein turned to Kaiyou and tried to figure out what she was staring at so intently. Raiein followed her line of sight and noticed Demon with the rifle. Raiein ran forward and jumped onto the stage just as a loud sound resounded through the area. He managed to push Nero down just as the bullet grazed his shoulder. Nero gasped as he hit his head on the stage floor. Lyall started growling at anyone that came near them.

"Shit, I missed. Damn him." Demon muttered out while removing the bullet shell and reloading. Nero blinked as Raiein got off of him quickly and pulled him to his feet. Kaiyou was still standing where Raiein left her. Her hands were unconsciously on her daggers.

"Nero, we need to leave. And we need to leave now! It's a fucking trap. Kaiyou!" Raiein yelled over his bleeding shoulder. Kaiyou glanced over slowly, but didn't move toward them. "Kaiyou!" She merely unsheathed her two daggers and attached the chains in one fluid motion. "For goodness sakes, Kaiyou we need to leave!" She merely shook her head and started swinging her daggers. They started to leave an unusual image and a powerful breeze started to form around her.

"Odori no Ken – Megami (1)." Kaiyou muttered under her breath. A strong gust of wind blew through the area making people close their eyes from the dust that flew into the air. She quickly sheathed her daggers and jumped onto the stage and pulled both Raiein and Nero after her. Lyall followed quickly. Lilura clicked her tongue in annoyance when she realized that she could no longer see where Kaiyou and her company had disappeared to.

"Kaiyou, slow down! Please stop running." Raiein grabbed Kaiyou's left hand. "Slow down! What has gotten into you?" She spun around to see the group looking at her worried. "Kaiyou…?"

"I shouldn't be alive…." Kaiyou muttered not looking at him. Raiein glanced down at her. "I just cause problems…."

"Stop right there, Kaiyou. I don't know what happened to make you feel that way. But I believe that you were born with a purpose, a destiny. Don't tell me that when I suddenly decided to leave my island." Raiein stated calmly. Nero stood up straight and walked over to her.

"Can we talk, privately?" Nero asked quietly. Kaiyou blinked before nodding slowly. Raiein waited with Lyall as the two of them walked off to talk. Raiein surveyed the surrounding area for anyone that would attack them. After a few minutes, the two returned to the group. "You two should get off this island while you still have the option of escape. There's just too many unexplainable things happening here."

"What about you? They were obviously aiming to kill you just now; whoever they were." Raiein questioned while having a hand on his katana.

"I'll be fine. I didn't get to my rank by just sitting on my ass all day. Plus if Lyall stays with me, I don't think I'll have that many problems. You shouldn't worry about me, but rather your own situation."

"This is where we split. Raiein, we should get off this island." Kaiyou stated evenly. Nero watched as Raiein and Kaiyou walked off after saying their farewells. Lyall growled from near his feet.

"Damn, we have a mess to clean up." Nero muttered darkly. Lyall laughed at him. The two of them ambled off into the shadows of the night. Kaiyou and Raiein quickly returned to their little boat to see Ethelinda standing there with a small smile. Next to her was a pile of supplies.

"Hey. Something happened didn't it?" Ethelinda questioned softly. Kaiyou merely nodded. "I brought some supplies for you guys. It should take you to the next island safely. I'm sorry I couldn't be more of a help to you."

"No it's alright, Ethelinda. You've done more than enough." Kaiyou replied with a weak smile. Raiein watched as she walked into the cabin of the boat. Raiein sighed softly. Ethelinda started putting the supplies on the boat with Raiein's help.

"Ethelinda, could you take a look at this stone before we leave?" Raiein asked after they had finished packing the supplies. Ethelinda glanced at the stone in Raiein's hand.

"Where did you find this gem-like stone?" Ethelinda questioned while picking it up, evaluating it. Raiein sat down on the side of the boat.

"It was floating in the ocean and we picked it up. What is it?"

"Be careful with your curiosity, Raiein. It might kill you one of these days." Ethelinda stated calmly. "This stone, I'm not 100% sure, but keep it away from Aeris. It might hurt her, if the sinking feeling in my stomach is anything to go by."

"Right. So what island is next?"

"Well, if you go in the northern direction you'll be going backwards. I suppose you'll want to go toward the Grand Line, so go south. It should be Lomania if I remember correctly." Raiein stood up and glanced at the starry sky. "It's in that direction." Ethelinda said while pointing to the southern direction. "So make sure you're going in that direction."

"Sure." Raiein took the gem into his hands. "Take care of yourself."

"Haha, take care of yourself and Aeris, Raiein. I'll be perfectly fine. I didn't survive this long to die without a fight. Get going." Ethelinda got off the boat and pushed them off. Raiein turned to get the boat ready go to. Ethelinda watched as the boat disappeared into the darken horizon. "Lancer, Reigh, take care of them." Ethelinda walked off pulling out a few daggers and spinning them in her hands, all the while smiling creepily. "Time to dance."

A/N: Woot another chapter! I thought I'd never finish! Sweet! I just realized that my year anniversary passed. My anniversary is a later date since I joined later! :D August 8, 2011 to be exact! Thank for sticking with us for so long! I'm really glad that I joined this joint project! Tell me what you think of this last part! Off to a new island next chapter. Finally, I reach you my newest character.

Odori no Ken – Megami: Sword Dance – Goddess.

Oh some of you asked about Alcestis. She shows up in Chapter 3 Part 1. She was the acquaintance of the figured man. I barely talked about them for a while so that's probably way she didn't make much of an impression.

Shadow40000: LOL, Nero and Kaiyou locked in the same room! I hear an ongoing argument coming on or a very tense atmosphere. :D

BetrayalIsBeautiful: Glad you like Nero! Hopefully Kaiyou doesn't make a habit of being too calm.

SeaDevil: I'm surprised that you realized that I gave Lyall's names to both mean wolf. For the most part, I try to give their names meaning as well.

Rose 'ire Trinity: here is the scientific name for Winged Arctic Gray Wolf = canis lupus arctos volaticus. I'm not even sure if it's right, oh well it's my own creation.


	27. AoFS: A Birthday Special

Disclaimer: We do not own One Piece in any way.

The Special Day! (A Non-Canon Story)

By: peanutbutterlung and Grandmaster Briz

Somewhere Out at Sea in the North Blue

It was a wonderful day out on the glimmering North Blue Sea. The ocean's water sparkled in response to the warm rays cast down upon it from the sun above, and calmly lapped back and forth against the bottom of a certain pirate ship. The ship slowly made its way over the gentle waves that carried it along under a peaceful vibrant blue sky that was splotched with a few incredibly puffy clouds here and there.

There was quite the commotion on-board this ship today. Shouts, laughing and cheers alike could be heard. Many sounding like the result of anticipation for a big surprise that would soon be realized.

This pirate ship just happened to be The Nostalgia, the pirate ship belonging to Kaiyou Aeris, and today it was holding some unexpected guests.

Now Inside a Certain Room on the Ship with Lively Guests  
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*Crash!* The sound of breaking glass echoed throughout the room accompanied by the steady drops of a potent mixture of blood and Orange juice hitting the wooden flooring. "DAMNIT!" Sorus let out a frustrated yell that caused the easily startled Raiein to jump to the ground and cover his head in a fetal position whilst his blades taunted at him relentlessly.

"HOW THE HELL ARE THOSE BASTARDS LATE WHEN WE ARE ALL ON THE SAME SHIP?!" Sorus roared in his continued tantrum, not even caring about his bleeding hand or how blood red his eyes had gotten.

"Keep your chin up!" Bert exclaimed with an uncomfortable quantity of enthusiasm as he gave Sorus big grin. "I am sure they will show up, it is a special day after all."

Polen was currently scanning around the room looking at everyone gathered before him. The glass shattering had freaked him out quite a bit, but he quickly recovered since he was so tough, or maybe it was because he was clenched onto Bo's massive shoulder. Either way his eyes were wandering under his 'cool' shades and he knew he looked fresh as could be. His shades were not the only thing 'cool' about him today though, for he was also decked out in a mini -tuxedo. Bert was right, it was a very special day and he was dressed to impress! He was sure if there were a 'most handsome' concert today he would win.

"Yo." Vince nudged Marko "Isn't that Bo Stockston with the koala on his shoulder?" he pointed nervously at the legendary West Blue Boxer.

"I think it is, but let's not anger him... I don't want to be punched... man" Marko added with a touch of shakiness in his voice.

"Bah, ya are nuttin' but sissies" The heavily scarred Ope cut in, "What I wouldn't give to get in the ring with him" He added as he nudged Antil for approval.

Before Antil could respond, however, a kid appeared on top of the table and poked Ope in the chest "hey wrinklescar-man what did ya get her, lemme see it, lemme see it, lemme see it!" He said with a remarkably huge grin spreading across his face that was a sure giveaway that he was up to no good.

Bo could hear the conversations springing up about him among the guests, he knew his fame would get him attention, but when he heard Ope's comment about wishing to fight, a certain trigger was pulled within him.

"Aw shit! What was that just now? You wanna go? I've been straight up aching for a good fight lately!" Bo called out towards Ope who was currently being harassed by a young green-haired boy sprawled out on the table before him.

Bo began to crack his knuckles in anticipation and maliciously stared down the challenger in his sight.

Sorus then exploded upon the realization that he was within the presence of 'THE' Bo Stockston. "NO, I AM GOING TO FIGHT HIM!" The bloodthirsty warrior roared while he grabbed the table with both hands and flipped it with all his might, causing Orrahn to go tumbling.

"DAHAHAHAHA LETS DO THIS" Sorus laughed as he charged at Bo with his arm reared back for a punch.

Sorus's path was then suddenly blocked when Raiein came out of nowhere with his katana and dagger combo, forcing his fellow swordsman to draw his own blades and clash with him.

"Oh stop acting like you are so special Myoujou" Kishin remarked.

"Ahh shut up or I'll melt you both in acid!" the swordsman blurted out as he desperately defended himself against Sorus's onslaught of spinning blades.

Bert grinned at the chaos that had suddenly erupted across the room and tossed a quick glance at Orrahn who had long recovered from his fall and was now compensating himself with the possessions of the dumbfounded Marko and Vince.

"Ohh, now this is my kinda party." Bert grinned with his usual enthusiasm. Don't mind if I do." The gigantic and ever stylish manta ray fishman added while he slowly drew back his right leg and rocketed into the fray "OMEGA KNEE!" He bolstered.

Having little knowledge of the fate that was about to befall him, Ope eagerly took a couple of steps towards Bo and let slip a savage grin that was only wiped away when the right side of his jaw caught the full force of Bert's attack and sent him to the ground with his glass eye rolling away.

"Well ain't that some shit?! You're not half bad!" Bo yelled out. The brawl that had started was utter chaos especially due to the small size of the room they were in and Bo wanted in on the action. His massive hand reached back for Polen who was clenched tightly on his shoulder. The koala didn't want to be yanked away from Bo, but the boxer finally managed to pluck the koala off of him and set him on the ground.

"Shit is gonna get mad wild in here cat. I can't have ya riding on my shoulder in all this. Go hide in a corner or something." Bo informed Polen who in turn ran away upon being separated from his human shield. Bo then turned to the massive fishman before him that just knocked his challenger clean to the floor.

Bo spat as he observed Bert before him. "Muay Thai am I right? Tsch I guess I gotta show ya that boxing is the ultimate form of fighting huh?"

And with that Bo pulled his massive right arm back with muscles bulging. It was but a mere second after this motion that he roared forward in a flash.

He quickly let off a feint which caused Bert to react to a false attack and when this opening was made Bo thundered out.

"SUNDAY PUNCH!" as he instantly connected with Bert's open mouth, thus sending the giant fishman toppling backwards at an alarming rate towards the others that were still brawling behind him.

"Damn I need more of this action! This shit is therapeutic!" Bo exclaimed as he walked into the fray.

The world spun in front of Appatus as he suddenly became parallel to the floor, looking up at a large but fashionable white fur coat with spots on it. He slowly placed down the drawing he was making of a personified ocean breeze that now had a large hole in it caused by the impact of the fishman. The navigating artist slowly glanced around the room that he had previously ignored and blew a couple of smoke rings that rose to the ceiling before finally speaking. "This seems to be quite the brawl you guys are having. Should we all calm down and remember why we are here?" The pirate said with his usual pleasant tone.

His voice of reason however was completely ignored by the thundering noise that was echoing from the entire ruckus. With that, the artist sat back down and reached for his sketchpad only to find it in the hands of a green haired kid who gave him a big grin before sticking it in a large sack that he was carrying.

"Boy was that a punch!" Bert said with a blood red grin, which despite its menacing context, still looked remarkably pleasant. "I guess I can't hold back against you huh? I better introduce you to my omega fist!"

The clangs of steel on steel echoed across the small room. "DAHAHAHAHAHAHA" Sorus laughed as he diced his third chair into pieces so small that they could be served in a soup. "I have never met someone who could guard my barrage for this long, I better start using my real techniques to finish ya!" Sorus said his eyes red with his insanity.

"Are you really just going to lose like this, or are you going to be a man?" Myoujou asked with a sinister tone as he blocked another of the savage pirate's attacks.

Raiein grunted at this but had to admit that his katana was right, his arm was getting tired and he needed to end this quick.

Meanwhile Bo let out a confident huff in response to Bert's claim. "Let's see what ya got then!" He grunted as he switched to a defensive stance and jumped back and forth on his toes ready to anticipate his opponent's movements.

It was about that time however that the door leading into the room slowly swung open with a creak that caught everyone's attention. Everyone fighting froze immediately. They watched as young lady with a very uncertain and confused face peered into the chaotic room. The girl had a friendly seagull perched on her arm that peaked into the room as well. It was Tompkins and she had found him walking around her ship aimlessly.

"KAIYOU!" Everyone then shouted in unison upon seeing her.

Meanwhile Elsewhere on the Ship in an Empty Room

Oregano was sitting on a chair with a fancy cake he had baked himself resting on his lap. It was a spice cake and was moist and fluffy with decorative icing on top to boot.

"Ayeee where in the stinking world is everyone at? They are all going to be late! Kaiyou could be here any minute!" Oregano exclaimed. Little did he know he was in the wrong room completely. He really should have paid closer attention to where the group was planning on meeting today. Or it might have been that he simply misheard due to his poor hearing.

In Yet Another Part of the Ship

Brizan had given up a while back. The outlaw had almost made it on time to an event for the first time in his life too but he had to take a pee, then he had to stare at himself in a mirror and scratch what he called facial hair, though in reality it was pretty debatable. Once he was finally just around the corner from the dining room, all hell broke loose like a marine fleet had launched a sneak attack from there with no less than thirty two cannons.

"Meh, I suddenly do not feel like going anymore, he mumbled with his usual tone that beamed with an overwhelming combination of concentrated spite, sarcasm, and everything negative. "I hate everything" he mumbled as he sprawled his self onto the floor, his hands gently supporting his head while his weapons were relocated to the front of the white sash he had gotten from Strawberry's package to avoid discomfort while he attempted to relax.

Then, after a couple of minutes, the noise seemed to come to a sudden halt. "Well that's surprising maybe they all killed each other" He talked to himself.

Now back at the Scene in the Room with Everyone Else

Kaiyou looked around at all the unexpected guests that were in turn looking straight back at her. This staring continued onward for a few moments of silence. On one end all the guests were flabbergasted that Kaiyou had appeared before them and they had all been fighting. Kaiyou on the other hand was beginning to drift off to a past memory that suddenly crossed her mind in this awkward moment of silence and she faded into a flashback.

The memory consisted of her walking down an empty street. She was anticipating something but the memory wasn't very clear and she couldn't connect the dots. Suddenly in her memory the image of a calendar appeared before her. A date on it was circled in red marker.

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY KAIYOU!" Everyone suddenly blurted trying to get rid of the awkward silence the best that they could. They wanted to move on and get to the celebration now that the Birthday girl was present.

This shouting startled Kaiyou completely, and knocked her out of her flashback in an instant. She looked over all the guests and soon realized that they had all planned a surprise party for her on her very special day.

"AND THOSE BASTARDS STILL AREN'T HERE!" Sorus exclaimed as he put his swords away and began to storm towards the door. "I AM TIRED OF WAITING, I AM GOING TO GO GET YOUR PRESENT!" He ranted some more as the sound of a slamming door marked his departure.

After several moments of silence, Bert walked over to Kaiyou and handed her a rather heavy sack. "HAPPY BIRTHDAY KAIYOU!" He exclaimed in the most sincere manner he could as he watched her open the package to reveal two giant, jeweled earrings that each must have been the size of one of Kaiyou's ears. "I always see the females of the surface walking around with jewels so I thought you would like my old pair of sea-diamond studs! They symbolize the beauty of the soul in my hometown, every man who takes up arms gets a pair." He exclaimed with more enthusiasm, completely ignoring how obviously impossible it would be for Kaiyou to wear them. "Ohh, and just a warning, they are almost as hard as real diamond underwater, but break as easy as a bird's neck on the surface" He continued with a grin, much to Tompkins's discomfort.

Kaiyou stared intently into the sea-diamond jewels before her. Their beauty shone brightly in her hands. As she looked over them, she walked over to the middle of the room and sat down at the main table so she could relax and have a seat. "How cool!" Kaiyou responded in a very pleased tone.

Bert's grin grew even larger upon hearing this and he nodded his head and backed away so the next guest could present Kaiyou with another gift.

Suddenly from the corner of the room came Polen running up to Kaiyou as fast as he could in his tuxedo and all. He was looking suave and he knew it. He continued to run up to her and then leaped into the air and landed in her free arm that Tompkins's wasn't already in. He then proceeded to give her a big koala bear Birthday hug. After this tight squeeze he swiftly reached into his jacket pocket and slid out a small rectangular black box and handed it to Kaiyou.

Kaiyou slid the box open to reveal her very own pair of 'cool' shades! They matched the pair Polen was wearing completely.

"Polen they look amazing!" Kaiyou spoke as she placed the glasses over her eyes. They were now both as 'cool' as could be with their matching 'cool' shades.

"Yo, Kaiyou." Vince and Marko suddenly appeared in the girl's face. "Here is our gift… man." Marko drawled on as he reached into his bag and began searching frantically.

"Yo, what's going on?" Vince asked after about a minute of Marko's rummaging only to have his friend look up and give him a grave expression.

"It broke… man" the slightly chubby, purple garbed pirate announced while holding out his hands to reveal a several broken pieces of dried mud. "It took us two whole days to sculpt it too… man." The man moaned pitifully.

Before he could even join in on his friend's mourning, Vince was pushed aside by the fearsome Ope who was now rubbing a rather large welt on his temple. "Ignore those idiots" Ope commanded Kaiyou in his rough voice that overflowed with gristle.

His equally scarred partner Antil joined his side and began to speak "Yes, ignore their easily broken gift, as ours will leave much more of a mark." He said with a slight chuckle as he finished his sentence.

"Ha! Good one!" Ope added with a laugh as he and Antil removed their shirts and spread their arms to their sides.

"Now Kaiyou, strike us wherever you wish and leave a mark, it is the ultimate glory for a warrior of the sea to leave a permanent wound!" The lanky marksman boasted with his chest out as far as it could go.

Kaiyou was overwhelmed with all that had just taken place before her. After regrouping her thoughts she had to deny the scar making unfortunately for it was a little gruesome and incredibly silly. She however told Marko and Vince not to worry about their gifts unfortunate fate because it was the thought that counts.

After Kaiyou had dealt with his subordinates' rather embarrassing displays, Appatus picked up a rectangular object covered in wrapping paper and held it beside himself while he removed his pipe, blew a couple of smoke rings and began to speak "Here you go, Ms. Kaiyou, I hope you enjoy it."

With a curious expression on her face, Kaiyou went to unwrapping the gift to reveal a painting. The painting was of the Nostalgia gliding along a sea of tree roots with no trees under an oddly purple moon. Before Kaiyou could thank the artist, however, she noticed a large pare of menacing red eyes between two of the shadowy roots. "Appatus, what is this?" She asked out of mere curiosity.

After the usual thirty seconds in which the navigator removed his pipe and blew a couple of smoke rings, he examined the painting closely. "Oh I see!" he said with an ever so slight tone of foreboding before replacing his pipe to smoke yet again.

The entire group simply starred at this in bewildering suspense, hoping that Appatus would eventually answer. A smoke ring slowly drifted its way to the ceiling before this answer finally came "Hmm, well its art so it is up for interpretation but as the artist, I am going to hazard a guess and say it is either your secret admirer or…" Appatus paused once more to smoke, the suspense elevating to unbelievable heights "your unavoidable doom, but hey it is up to you."

Kaiyou had spaced out during Appatus's long explanation but was quickly brought back into focus when the rough voice of Bo Stockston boomed before her. "Aye Kaiyou, I got your present right here." Bo spoke out as he held out an autographed photo of himself. "This shit will be worth mad cash for ya." Bo added as the girl took the signed photo from his hands. "Oh and I got you this too." Bo continued as he reached into a bag and pulled out a pair of brand new boxing gloves. "If anybody's wack-ass starts gettin' to ya, you can relieve some heavy doses of stress with these puppies."

Kaiyou accepted the gloves and nodded her head in agreement with the boxer with a smile.

"Hey girl-face!" Orrahn exclaimed with unrelenting glee as he removed a rather large bag from his shoulder and dumped its contents all over the floor. "I thought it would be sweet if you got to choose your gift!" he grinned as he ran his hand through the contents to spread them out. "Choose one!" He blurted impatiently as he awaited the girl's decision.

Upon closer examination, the various people in the room began to notice their own belongings in the pile. Objects from Appatus's sketchbook to the Eucalyptus sushi roll that Polen was saving for a snack, everyone had at least one thing that belonged to them in Orrahn's present stash, well except for Bo that is, since he wasn't about to fall victim to some snot-nose pickpocket. For everyone else though this was not going to fly one bit.

The group soon began to surround Orrahn in rage due to having their personal items stolen from them by this youngin'.

Orrahn was as lucky as ever though when a large portion of the wall was blown away just in time to distract everyone else so that he could slip to another corner of the room. Sorus was back and he had a sword in one hand and an antelope balanced between the other and his mouth. There was a loud thud when Sorus dropped the dead animal before Kaiyou on the table. Ope and Antil exchanged uncomfortable looks as their captain presented his present. "Now this one was a fighter!" Sorus growled as he puffed his chest out. "But hey, there are few things more tiring that hunting a beast with your bare hands, DAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

Kaiyou was shocked at this new present that Sorus laid before her. Polen and Tompkins felt incredibly uneasy as well since they were both still hanging onto the birthday girl and equally as close to the animal carcass.

Desperately trying to get Kaiyou's mind off of the gruesome present before her Raiein quickly began to approach his captain with a present of his own, but it was about that time that two figures suddenly appeared in the open doorway to the room. It was Oregano and Brizan of all people!

"Happy Birthday! Haha sorry about being late Kaiyou!" Oregano laughed as he entered into the room with a goofy face as per usual. He was wearing a purple and blue striped party hat strapped to his head and was holding his spice cake out in front of him. The cake was wobbling quite a bit due to his hobbling walk that came from having a broken leg.

Brizan was sweating profusely from the forehead with his face redder than Sorus's hair. Despite this, he refused to remove the normal grey jacket that he always wore and proceeded to complain "It's so damn hot in here." he moaned as his eyes fell upon Kaiyou "Oh happy birthday by the way." Brizan said in his normal, semi-sarcastic tone that surely caused a bit of confusion as to what he was actually saying.

Sorus was still basking in the glory of his kill when Oregano and Brizan walked in and ruined the mood "WHAT THE HELL?" Sorus screamed as he threw a chair at Brizan who just barely managed to duck in time. "WHERE THE HELL WERE YOU TWO?!"

"Oh, I almost made it..." Brizan began in a rather blunt tone "But then I heard all the noise and decided to rest until it died down."

Everyone in the room could see the gradual reddening of Sorus's eyes as his rage began to peak.

"Captain you need to let it slide." Appatus said on a rare occasion that he had blown his smoke rings just before he intended to speak. "Let's not ruin her Birthday."

Oregano was still slowly swaying back and forth towards the table to present Kaiyou with the cake he had baked her as he then spoke. "Yeah Sorus it's no biggie man! Let's all just enjoy the moment and have some cake!"

Sorus was still boiling with rage, but before he could respond to Oregano something incredibly sudden was set off. Tompkins's finally spotted Oregano in the room. He had been hiding his eyes due to the morbid present Sorus had left before him, but once he heard his master's voice a territorial urge took over and he blitzed off into the air and landed with ferocity on top of Oregano head.

"Yikes!" Oregano uttered as he was thrown completely off-balance by the hard impact Tompkins's had made on his head. He desperately tried to regain control but his crutch wouldn't stabilize him enough. Everyone in the room watched with wide eyes as the scene before them seemed to take place in slow-motion.

Oregano was now falling forward directly towards Sorus who was standing before him. "Oye! Not the cake!" He cried as the cake was flung like a projectile out of his hands, landing square in the face of the burning Sorus!

The buildup was slow at first as Sorus simply licked his lips in disbelief. That was when the overwhelming sugary flavor from the icing reached his taste buds, he hated sugary food. His whole body began to shake violently just seconds before he erupted like he never had before. Marko and Vince's limp bodies were launched across the room in no longer than 1.2 seconds just because they had the misfortune of being near their captain at his angriest hour. There was a faint moan that sounded something along the lines of "...man" when their bodies went through the opposing wall.

"I'LL KILL YOU!" He roared at who he had now declared as his mortal enemy.

Oregano was still face down on the floor when he heard Sorus scream out towards him. Upon hearing the threat of death Oregano gulped but couldn't help but laugh afterwards at what a crazy thing to have happen. "It was an accident I promise!" Oregano explained as he slowly rose to look up at Sorus. When his eyes met with the scene before him however he saw Bert holding Sorus back tightly to keep him from rampaging about.

"Oh yikes, got you right in the face huh?" Oregano muttered as he saw the icing covered angry face before him. "Shoot I'll make up for it man I promise!"

Oregano then managed to rise up slowly and then turned to Kaiyou. "Dag! But there goes your Birthday cake Kaiyou! What a bummer! Don't worry I'll make another one for ya soon!" Oregano added as he then wobbled over to where Kaiyou was with Tompkins's perched comfortably on top of his party hat.

"But don't worry I still have gifts for you!" Oregano said with a smile as he reached in his pocket and pulled out a bag of candy and handed it to Kaiyou. "This candy is amazing!" He laughed. "Oh and one more thing Kaiyou!" He added as he reached into his other pocket and pulled out an old rolled up scroll and gave it to the birthday girl.

Kaiyou happily accepted it and unrolled it revealing what appeared like a treasure map.

"It's said that this specific buried treasure is made for those seeking adventure! I hope you like it!" Oregano spoke.

Kaiyou smiled and nodded in response. "It's all wonderful Oregano, thank you so much!"

Raiein took a deep breath. "Just give her your damn gift already" Myoujou hissed in frustration at his wielder's incompetence. Before Raiein had a chance to do just that, however, Brizan took a step forward with a slight smile across his lips.

He could do this, Brizan knew it, and there was no way he was going to fail now. His procrastination had gotten him into plenty of trouble before, but not this time, this time he was going to convince Kaiyou that his gift was the best gift ever!

"Kaiyou, as you can see, I do not have a package or a bag on me." He began as he casually propped one hand up on the wall he was next to and crossed his legs at the ankles. "That is because my gift to you is not physical at all." Brizan continued while he removed his hand from the wall and took a couple of steps forward. The blond-haired outlaw took his right hand and pressed it up against his chest as his smile broadened "You see, the greatest gift of all is your heart, in my heart, in all of our hearts."

Brizan was using all of his will power to keep things going smoothly. The outlaw spread his arms out beside him in a slightly dramatic fashion "It is in the comradery and friendship that we all share!" He said his sarcastic tone not quite matching up with the words that he spoke.

Sorus was almost calmed down when Brizan uttered those words, but now he had completely lost it "YOU CHEAP BASTARD!" He bellowed, his arms freeing themselves from the grasps of the distracted Bert as he charged forward and drew his swords. "EAT MY BLADES!" he screamed maniacally, but Brizan was already way ahead of him and jumping through the hole that Marko and Vince had made earlier.

Everyone still in the room simply shook their heads and laughed as they watched Sorus run after Brizan in hopes of slicing him to ribbons.

"Should we help him?" Oregano questioned with a laugh.

"He had that shit coming if you ask me." Bo responded quickly to Oregano's question. "Plus that hothead is off your back now so I would be thankful if I were you and stay clear for a while." Bo added.

Oregano laughed upon hearing this and nodded his head. "Hopefully things don't get too out of control between them."

Everyone nodded in agreement with Oregano and finally turned their attention back to the birthday girl. A smile was on her face. It had been quite the birthday that's for sure.

The group all formed around the table and all took a seat. They were all laughing and having a good time. This hectic day, was still a special day, and it was great to be among friends.

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY KAIYOU!"

A's/N:

Yo, what up! Briz here, we actually got a chap out in two days, can you believe it?

_Pretty wild huh? Oh and this is peanutbutterlung by the way! Wow what a crazy chapter Brizan!_

I know right, we saw it was Kaira's birthday on msn so happy birthday to her! (And if it isn't really her birthday, who cares we wrote a chapter anyways) Yea we thought we might throw this out here and give you guys a taste of what it could be like when the crews finally meet.

_No doubt man! A big Happy Birthday to Kaira! We really hope you enjoy this special birthday chapter we made for you! Same goes for you readers as well! And just like Brizan said this is a perfect taste for how chaotic things can get between our crews!_

Well, looks like we are done here peanutbutterlung. Okay!

_Right on Brizan! Okay!_

**HAPPY BIRTHDAY KAIRA!**


	28. Rift Pirates Chapter 3 Part 1

Pills, Breakfast and Torture

by: Orrahn

A gull flew along the pink sky, the sun steadily rising behind him. There were a couple moments of whimsical bliss as the bird bounced majestically along the horizon. The breeze was quite gentle on this peaceful morning on the South Blue with no signs of even the mildest storm. Despite the wind's gentleness, the bird had been flying for quite a while overseas and longed to land. This was when a large object bouncing along the blue ocean caught his eye. With a call, the bird swooped down and dove at the object's heights point, longing for rest without even paying attention to the fact that another already rested here.

"Gotcha birdie!" Orrahn sung as he snatched the seagull from the air with one hand on the claws and the other behind the neck to cover the wings. The bird struggled to get free but the boy already had him far overpowered. Orrahn quickly plucked a feather from its back and stuck it inside one of his coat pockets. "Let's go show Curly!" Orrahn sung as he jovially hopped onto the rope and slid his way down to the deck of the _Moon Goddess_ and danced his way over to the bard who was closely inspecting his instrument near the ship's weasel neck which rose proudly over the morning's gentle waves.

The aspiring bard was completely unaware to the movements of a certain mischievous youth behind him. "Hey Curly, you hungry?" chanted a voice from behind immediately before the bard's face met with a face full of flapping bird. The bird then sub sequentially escaped, though only after clawing and pecking Tal's face to shreds which caused the startled bard's lute to take a little plunge into the waters of the South Blue.

"My livelihood!" Tal uttered in an unreasonably high pitched voice. There were then only mere moments of silence before the bard's head snapped a full three sixty degrees and glared at the thief with the purest hate he could possibly muster.

Orrahn, on the other hand was unfazed by the glaring and simply grinned broadly at the young musician. "Just forget about that Curly!" He paused. "Lutes are lame anyways." The boy added with an even wider grin before immediately darting back up to the crow's nest.

Tal kicked out in frustration only for his undirected kick to land square on the ankles of the group's shipwright. "Woah there Tal!" The massive manta ray fishman said with a huge smile on his face. "Watch where you're aiming those or someone might die!" He added in a rather joking fashion.

"My bad Bert…" Tal responded in a rather insincere tone as he looked up at the oddly dressed fishman before him. Tal was barely even a third of Bert's height and looked like a sniveling curly-haired kid compared to the dark turquoise fishman with dreads.

"Oh don't worry about it buddy!" Bert said with much enthusiasm, "Oh and by the way, do you think you could check to see if Brizan is up yet we kind of need our navigator if we want to make it to your island man!" Bert said as he gave Tal a big pat on his shoulder.

Tal just stared at the massive fishman with his mouth slightly agape. "Is this how you guys treat guests?" Tal uttered in a rather shocked tone. "What sort of captain can't wake up on his own anyways!" Tal's previously cheerful demeanor had been shattered in the chaos that happened to be the past five minutes.

At the sound of these words, Orrahn practically fell out of the crow's nest and landed right next to the bard. "Captain!" Orrahn spat, obviously disturbed by the title "Blondie is not our captain!"

Tal was momentarily unsure of exactly how to react. "Then who is in command of the ship if the man sleeping in the captain's room is not the captain!" the bard asked.

Orrahn kicked the deck of the ship and gave off a rare grimace. "That stupid blondie just called dibs on the room." The boy sneered. "We don't have a captain, its not like we are pirates or anything, we do what we want!" There was a moment of silence before a huge grin spread across his face that stank of pure mischief. "Now go wake blondie up, it'll be fun!"

Tal simply starred for a moment and looked to Bert who seemed to be a lot more trustworthy then the kid. Bert simply gave the bard a broad smile and a massive thumbs up bigger than Tal's head and covered in a random assortment of jewelry that pierced his webbed hands. Tal let out a sigh and gave in to their will. "Fine…" He said at last, completely broken as he walked over to the door that led to the room that in any normal circumstance would house a captain but apparently that was not how it worked on this ship only to find the door locked tight.

"My bad curly!" Orrahn said as he gleefully bounced his way towards the door and immediately proceeded to pick the lock which gave a loud click to signal that the deed was done. "There ya go!" The green-haired thief said with a sly smile before skipping away.

After a quick eyebrow raise at the boy's strange behavior, Tal proceeded to turn the knob and attempted to push the door open. "Err, the door seems to be blocked by some heavy objects."

"Ohh!" Bert exclaimed. "I forgot to mention that he may barricade and lock the door!" The huge fishman said as he walked over the door and began to push. There was the distinct scraping sound of several rather large objects being pushed across the wood flooring of the ship. The door was now open enough for a slender man to slide through, though some sort of black tapestry seemed to fall down as the door opened as if to block the light from entering.

Something about the nature of the forethought of the man who navigated the ship, chose destinations and slept in the captain's cabin but was definitely not the captain put Tal a bit on edge. "What the hell do you do to him?" The bard asked as a couple droplets of sweat began to trickle down his paled face.

"Nothing at all!" Orrahn said as he nudged Tal's arm with a cold object which turned out to be a glass of ice water. "Geez curly, are you alright, you look like crap!" The thief said with a big smile at the bard's uneasiness.

Tal cautiously took the glass and looked to the much more honest Bert to see if the little punk was telling the truth. "Take my word on it Tal! We don't do anything to him!" Bert reassured the bard.

Tal sighed and began to step forward. "You know what, I feel like I am doing him a favor by waking him up as opposed to whatever sort of cruel pranks you play on him while he's asleep!" He said as he gave a quick glance to Orrahn with a deep hatred that brought back memories of just a few minutes ago when he had been smacked in the face with a live seagull and had dropped the only piece of equipment that he needed for his particular career choice. These memories made Tal grimace and shake his head in an attempt to rid himself of them before stepping forward into the abyss.

Well, the pitch black room might as well have been the abyss since the bard's world suddenly turned a darkest black. Brizan was obviously a man who preferred to sleep in darkness when possible. Tal could not even see the rather large object that he immediately stumbled on this his first step. "Damn," he said in a quiet voice, hoping for the navigator to awaken without him having to use the water let alone raise his tone.

There were several moments of silence before a loud rumbling began. "A volcano!" Tal exclaimed aloud. It took several moments of heart-pounding panic before the curly-haired bard could pinpoint the true origin of the sound: Brizan was snoring. "Wow you are quite the heavy sleeper, aren't you?" Tal asked quite loudly in one last ultimately futile attempt to awaken the blonde-haired outlaw. "Damn," Tal mumbled again in frustration, he had to get closer after all.

There were several moments where the bard stumbled over a seemingly random assortment of objects as he made his way across the dark room towards the source of the noise where his shins strucked the metal framing of a bed. "Ow!" Tal exclaimed as he grabbed his shin with his free hand and hopped around for a moment, splashing ice water on the wood floor as he did so.

The snoring, however, continued undisturbed. Tal let out a sight and reached his arm forward to nudge Brizan's side. "Kagan… or Brizan, whatever your name is, we need you to wake up." Tal said in a calming tone only for the navigator to remain in his near comatose state. "Fine…" Tal stated, finally giving in to Orrahn's wishes and splashing the glass of water all over Brizan before nudging him once more.

In the future, Tal would regard this moment as one of the biggest mistakes of his life, but there was no redemption for what he had done. In one, extremely brief instant, the snoring stopped and was replaced with a raspy, almost demonic hissing sound followed by a tight grip that snapped around Tal's wrist. A terrible creature had been awakened!

"Zehehehehe," Orrahn laughed with a huge grin. "We got Curly good!" The thief continued as he held up his hand for a high five and jumped into the air. Bert's hand met the boy's with a force that caused him to do a backflip before landing squarely on his nimble feet.

"Bohohohoho," The huge fishman laughed, "I am sure glad that I did not have to wake him up again, he truly is terrifying in the morning!"

Back in the room, Tal had begun to realize that Bert had in fact not lied, they really did nothing but wake Brizan up. The true reasoning for Orrahn's devilish smile was not what they did to Brizan but what Brizan would do to whoever woke him up. "H-hey, its time to wake up…" Tal said sheepishly.

Unseen to Tal due to the darkness, there was a shadow of fatigue under the blonde-haired outlaw's eyes while he glared at the man who dared to intrude his domain with all the hatred and spite that he could possibly muster. "When the hell did you get to decide when I wake up, freeloader!" Brizan asked in a raspy hiss of a voice. "Give me one reason why I should let you leave this room with your wrist unbroken!" Brizan continued, his grip tightening on the poor bard's lute plucking wrist.

"Err, because I gave you the map that is guiding you to the next island?" Tal pleaded in a rather sheepish tone.

The grip loosened at long last, causing the bard to rub it feverishly. "Fine, just get out!" Brizan hissed as he knocked a line of his junk off the dresser next to his bed.

Tal didn't need to be asked twice, he rushed out of the room as fast as he possibly could. Orrahn and Bert where there to greet him when he exited the room, both smiling broadly. "So how'd it go curly?" Orrahn asked with a grin. "Wasn't he just a bundle of fun?"

Tal couldn't respond, he simply glared at the two who had tricked him in such a manner. "I'm going to the bathroom! Just leave me alone right now." The bard darkly mumbled as he briskly walked towards the door on the opposite end of the deck while simultaneously reaching into his jacket pocket.

"I don't know why he has got to be such a downer all the time. He should really just relax and enjoy the view!" Bert exclaimed in a tone that suggested he really was unaware of why waking Brizan up could possibly make one so angry.

"Seriously, Curly really needs to quit bein' such a baby!" The boy-thief agreed, though in a much more mischievous tone than his large companion.

Nearly thirty minutes had passed with only Bert and Orrahn on the deck when the door to Brizan's room creaked open. The blonde-haired navigator stumbled onto the deck while simultaneously clutching his head and squinting his eyes as if in pain. "Stupid sun…" Brizan mumbled, "Why do you always got to be so grossly incandescent?"

"GOOD MORNING BRIZAN!" Bert exclaimed with his usual enthusiasm all the while giving the ship's navigator two huge thumbs up.

"He's awakened!" Orrahn chanted. "We're doomed! DOOMED!" the thief said as he gleefully bounced around the deck.

"Ugh…" Brizan moaned as he clutched his head, it was clear that he was not a fan of yelling in the morning. "Just let me get to the kitchen, I need to eat some breakfast and take my 'special pill' before torturing myself by talking to you guys." The grumpy outlaw growled, his feet dragging while he slowly trudged over to the door on the other end of the ship. Brizan pulled the door open and stepped inside only to walk straight into Tal who was busy stowing away something in his pocket.

"Hey are you less of a demon yet?" Tal asked in a rather joking manner.

Too bad Brizan was in no mood for jokes until he had completed his morning rituals of eating a good breakfast and taking his 'special pill'. "Whatever…" Brizan grumbled as he continued to walk forward which caused his to bump shoulders with the bard before opening another door and descending down some stairs.

"Guess not…" Tal concluded before continuing out the door to see that the deck was now emptied. "Well this is nice." The bard commented on the silence while he made his way to the railing on the side of the ship and glanced out at sea. The bard leaned over the rail as if looking for something. "We should get there soon." He mumbled with a sly smile.

There was a loud splash on the other side of the ship as if something large was exiting the water. "FIRE!" came a rather ecstatic voice from behind. Tal attempted to turn around, but he was far too slow. A large glob of water made contact with the side of his face with enough force to flip him over the railing. Just before falling back first into the water, Tal managed to catch a glimpse of his attackers as they too soared over the railing. With a massive grin on his face and his arms pumped forward like some sort of overly stylish superhero, there was Bert who had most likely spat the water that knocked Tal overboard from his mouth. On Bert's back however, was the true mastermind behind the assault. Orrahn clutched tightly onto the clothing on the fishman's back with his left hand while his right hand pointed onwards like a conquering General on his horse's back. "Mission complete!" were the last words that Tal heard before crashing into the waves below.

Back in the kitchen Brizan was frozen in shock, his eyes wide and mouth agape. Brizan opened the fridge once more, no fruit, no vegetables, no sausage, nope only dinner foods and deserts were in this fridge. "I can't eat this shit for breakfast! I will be crashed and lethargic all day!" Brizan grumbled while he slammed the door closed only to reopen it again to grab his vegetable juice.

Brizan panted and leaned against the counter as he opened the can of tomato juice, all this moving around with having been fully awakened by his morning rituals had worn him out. After taking a couple more seconds to breathe, he popped his pill into his mouth and used the tomato juice to wash it down.

Brizan took a deep gulp and starred at the can for a couple of seconds as he woke up. "Now I just need some food, maybe we got some bread." Brizan grumbled to himself as he began to look into the pantry. "Hell yes!" Brizan exclaimed as he grabbed the packaged loaf and pulled it down to open it.

The putrid smell of a thousand pirate feet flooded the room causing Brizan to drop the bread to the ground. Though calling it bread may not have been the best classification for it considering that it seemed to be more fungus than anything. "Dammit, I need breakfast!"

Back on the deck, Tal was drenched with sea water and gasping for breath while Orrahn rolled on the deck in laughter.

"You should cheer up man!" Bert said to the bard upon seeing the purity of the hatred in Tal's expression. "There is no reason to be such a downer all the time!"

Tal's expression calmed down upon hearing these words and let out a big sigh. "Fine, I suppose things could not get much worse anyways." The bard agreed only to eat his words just second later along with some green and red fungus bread that hit him right in the mouth.

"That's what you get for waking me up." Brizan said in the most calm and positively sinister tone while Tal gagged and coughed on the bread. The blonde-haired outlaw then walked up to the loaf of bread and launched it overboard. "Where the hell are our breakfast foods?" Brizan asked keeping his expression calm as he looked straight at Orrahn, since he had a bit of a 'hunch' that the thief was involved.

"My bad blondie!" Orrahn snickered. "I thought it would be fun to kill time by pelting birdies with clementines!" The mischievous boy said with a grin.

Brizan starred at his for a moment with a piercing gaze before getting distracted by Tal who currently dragging his tongue along the deck of the ship in a desperate attempt to release the foul taste from his palate. "Whatever…" Brizan responded at last, "I am going to go take a shower since we have no food here, I can't navigate till I am fully awake." Brizan continued as he walked back into his room which had its own bathroom.

"Hope you have a blast!" Bert said in a rather encouraging manner as Brizan left to take his shower.

"Hey Curly, won't you stop licking the deck? Its weird!" Orrahn barked at Tal who grimaced and looked up to reveal a tongue full of splinters.

"Ouch, now that's gotta hurt!" Bert winced with a faint air of pain in his normally upbeat voice.

"Ve'ey muck oh," Tal agreed while attempting to avoid using his tongue to speak as much as possible. "Buuf, how are we goin' oo gef oo ee ext islamn wiffoup a naviga'er." Tal asked in such a manner that Bert nearly flipped his head upside down while trying to decipher his meaning.

"I got this Whaley, I speak 'hurt tongue'." Orrahn chanted as he took a second to decipher what the bard was attempting to say. "He's saying that he apologizes for being such a downer and would love nothing more than to be blasted with more water!"

"Ohh, that's it!" Bert exclaimed "Well that can be arranged!" The fishman added as he began to move towards the edge of the ship.

It was at this moment that the bard panicked and drug his fingernails across his tongue and ripped all the splinters right out. "WAIT!" Tal panicked before Bert could jump into the water "I asked you how we are going to get to this island with our navigator taking a shower!" Tal cried out while blood dripped off his tongue.

"Aww, what a bummer" Orrahn frowned "No apology then?"

"WHY THE HELL WOULD I APOLOGIZE TO YOU HORRIBLE PEOPLE!" Tal exploded at last, shaking for several seconds in intense anger before it finally began to sizzle over. "Forget it…" Tal sighed as he pulled out an unlabeled map and a compass. "Do any of you guys know how to navigate?" Tal asked, turning more to Bert than the perpetually tricky Orrahn.

"No, but I'm sure we could figure it out if we work together." Responded the fishman with baseless enthusiasm.

Nearly thirty minutes later, Brizan exited the shower and began to get dressed. Before he knew it, he found himself face first on the ground. "What the hell is going on?" The navigator muttered, wondering what could have possible happened on the ship in the past thirty minutes. Pushing himself off the floor, the outlaw slipped on his jacket, sash and grabbed his weapons in case they were under attack before kicking his way out of the door to find the _Moon Goddess _bouncing up and down in a terrible storm.

"Yo… what the hell is going on?" Brizan attempted to say only to be drowned out by the torrential downpour. "YOOO, WHERE THE HELL DID THE STORM COME FROM!" Brizan shouted much louder this time. Another huge bump caused something heavy to fall onto Brizan's head.

"My bad blondie!" Orrahn said with grin as hell rolled off of Brizan's back while rain poured down his hair and face.

Brizan let out a sigh and pushed himself up. "How are we in the middle of a storm if it should have been smooth sailing all the way to the island?" he asked with both eyebrows raised in a rather skeptical manner as he already had a feeling who may have been responsible.

"Curly did it!" Orrahn sang, not wasting one second to sell out his accomplice. "That punk thought he could get to the island himself!"

"Yea," Brizan agreed. "I'm sure the new guy who can't do much more than play a lute and sorta hold his own against naked tribesmen would try to commandeer a ship through rough waters on his own. Not to mention force Bert to do his bidding." The outlaw added with much sarcasm while the rain dripped down his face. "Speaking of which where is Bert?"

As if on cue, a rather large figure burst out of the water and landed on the already violently rocking ship with enough force to send both Brizan and Orrahn to the deck. "My bad guys!" Bert announced with an encouraging smile. "Tal fell in the ocean again, I had to save him!" A crumpled up Tal then fell onto the deck and gasped for air.

"Thanks," the bard began, "even though I would never have even fallen in if you didn't suggest we try to go to the island on our own without an experienced navigator."

Bert just kept on smiling "Brizan's back now though, I am sure he can get out of this storm, can't ya?" the shipwright asked as he turned his massive head towards the ship's navigator.

"Nope," came Brizan's rather blunt answer. "I have no clue how to sail through storms."

"He really doesn't!" Orrahn jumped in. "Blondie really isn't even a good navigator, he just sailed a bit growing up and read the encyclopedia article on navigation zehehehehehe."Orrahn laughed at the rather annoyed expression that Brizan shot him.

"Yea," Brizan agreed in a very irritated tone. "The article mainly talked about magnetic declination adjustments, setting routes, and how to avoid storms more than how to get out of them." The not so much a navigator explained with a grimace, "Well at least I am better than a certain punk kid who doesn't even have a real position on the ship." He added with a sly smile.

The next moment was an odd one indeed, for it was one of the very rare occasions where the massive fishman that was the group's shipwright actually frowned. "If that's true, then how did you guys manage to sail around the South Blue for two years?" He asked with serious concern. "You had to have been stuck in a storm before."

"Oh yea, we usually just waited out and stole someone else's ship if the damage was too bad." Brizan stated in a fairly straightforward tone.

"Are you sure you aren't pirates?" Tal asked with serious concern. "I mean stealing ships and goods at sea are pretty much what pirates do."

"Yea, I am sure." The outlaw answered with an undertone of annoyance. "You see, pirates attack ships and then take them. Those ships usually attack us for our bounties," Brizan reasoned, "or if they don't, Orrahn and I just taunt them until they fire the first shot. I really hate making the first move anyways." The 'navigator' laughed dryly.

"So how are we gonna make it out of this storm?" Bert asked with his smile once more as broad as it usually was.

Brizan let out a sight at these words and walked over to the giant shipwright and placed his hand on his arm since Bert was too tall for Brizan to touch his shoulder. "I hate to break it to you," Brizan began with the slyest of smiles gracing the far corners of his lips. "But it looks like you are going to have to push it out of the storm, because I don't feel like doing anything since you guys ate all my breakfast food." The outlaw's smile got just a touch more noticeable as he sat down and crossed his arms in defiance.

"He's not gonna move." Orrahn chipped in. "He likes to be stubborn for absolutely no reason but his own entertainment sometimes."

Bert just simply sighed and jumped into the water with a smile while Orrahn and Tal pulled the sales back up.

It was quite a site indeed to see the massive, but stylish manta ray fishman push the midnight blue ship through the water and out of the crashing waves.

"Now Tal," Brizan said once everyone was back on deck and still drenched despite the best efforts of the sun which was now almost to the center of the sky. 'Its almost noon and I still haven't had breakfast' the blonde-haired outlaw thought to himself before continuing his sentence. "Give me that map so I can figure out where we are."

After a couple of minutes of inspection, Brizan managed to pinpoint their rough location after hearing which direction they had gone to run into the storm. "I believe we are right here." The man who filled the navigator-role of the ship whether or not he actually had the knowledge to complete the job stated as he pointed at a spot just east of a decently sized island. "You know, it sort of bothers me that this map has no island names. For all I know, I could be sailing towards Impel Down."

"Yea, that's just how it came I guess. This Island does have a town on it though." Tal answered, trying to sound as reassuring as possible. "It is right about here." Tal pointed out at a bay on the south east corner of the map.

"Well can you at least tell me the name of the place so that I can be at least a little confident that we aren't going to Impel Down?" Brizan asked the newcomer in an agitated tone while he simultaneously adjusted the ships rout so that they would land at the town.

"Yea sure, it's been a while but I am pretty sure this place is called Sm-." Tal stopped for a second to think for a moment before finishing his sentence. "Yea its Smooreshelm Island"

"Oh, I've heard of that place." Brizan said, now feeling much more confident as there was indeed an island in the area that went by that name. "Smooreshelm is the place with that famous haunted mansion with the big reward for whoever cleans it out right?" The outlaw asked, glad to go to a place he actually knew a bit about.

"Yup, that is the one." Tal said with a smile, "are you interested in claiming that reward or something?"

Brizan scowled at this question. "Hell no, why would I ever risk my life for a bit of money. I don't really even care about that sort of stuff. I'm living fine with the money we have right now."

Orrahn took this moment to jump into the conversation. "In other words, blondie is scared!"

Brizan was about to lash back at the punk when Bert's voice boomed across the deck. "Island sited!" After those words were announced, all discussion was stopped so that the group could focus on the situation at hand.

After a couple more minutes, the group was pulling into the docks of a town with odd mound shaped buildings that were covered in oval windows. What was even more strange was that both the docks and the buildings were built with gray wood . "This place looks pretty cool." Brizan said since gray had always been one of his favorite colors.

"I wanna climb those mountains!" Orrahn exclaimed as he pointed at the decently sized, but rounded yellow mountains in the distance with smoke-like fog obscuring the tops from sight.

"Yea this place does look a bit different," Brizan commented while he tied the ship to the docks, his stomach's growling seemingly competing with his own voice. "I have to eat first though since you guys can't preserve food." Brizan muttered under his breath while a loud splash signaled that Bert had dropped the anchor.

"Gosh, where are all the people at?" Bert asked with a concerned smile as the group began to walk through the main street after departing the docks. "I would think there would be at least one person outside at noon in a town like this."

"Yea, this is weird," Brizan agreed. "I would ask Tal, but he and Orrahn are watching the ship." Brizan said, wondering if it was the best decision to leave those two together.

"Oh don't worry we are right behind you," came a familiar, high pitched voice from behind.

"Is staying still on the ship for just a couple of minutes really that hard?" The blonde-haired outlaw asked while he rolled his eyes as hard as he possible could. The outlaw then turned around to see the last thing he expected to see. Tal was holding his sword to the throat of a tied up Orrahn.

"What's going on Tal? Was it something we did?" Bert asked, his smile disappearing for the second time that morning.

"Don't even think about grabbing your pistol if you want this brat to live. Kekekekeke." Tal laughed with a sly smile on his face. "Just give up so I can go eat the pancakes I was promised! A whole three tons!"

Much to Tal's surprise, Brizan pulled out his pistol anyways and pointed it all Tal. "That punk has been held hostage enough times that I know people are only bluffing when they threaten to kill their only advantage. How about you drop the brat." Brizan countered, his finger tightening on the trigger. "And while you are at it, surrender all those pancakes to me. I suppose that they will have to suffice since I couldn't have clementines this morning.

"No way you are not getting my year's supply of pancakes, I worked hard for those!" Tal counter, completely shocked by Brizan's outrageous demand. So much so, that he almost dropped his hostage.

Brizan sighed and took aim with his pistol. "I don't think you want to make me do this man, just put down the weapon."

Instead of the sound of a sword being sheathed like Brizan expected, he was instead answered with the easily distinguishable sound of about eighty guns being readied at once. "No, Mr. 'The Abridged' I think you should be the one to drop your weapon," came a frighteningly familiar voice. Brizan and Bert were completely surrounded by marines that had poured out the many side roads of the town.

"Well, this explains why there were no people here. I told you Tal would know, didn't I?" Brizan said while he placed his pistol and sword on the ground in front of him and then placed his hands behind his head.

"That you did, can't believe that he lead us right into a trap though!" Bert agreed while he too placed his massive hands behind his head in surrender.

"You were a bit later than you said you would be in the call you gave me this morning." The familiar voice sounded again. "But you did manage to help me capture a criminal who has eluded me for nearly two years! So I must thank you for your most ample… talents Tal…. Or should I call you by your real name? Master Swindler Unagi!" It was now that the true mastermind decided to step into the center of the encirclement and clamped a pair of oddly bulky, gray handcuffs around Brizan's wrists and a pair of heavy steel cuffs around Bert's. "Welcome to Smokey Top Island Soso Brizan and you too fishman." Captain Butterfield began as he twirled his pink curly mustache with his index finger. "I hope you enjoy your stay at the wonderful 64th branch marine base on the other end of the island!"

Brizan felt the energy get sapped right out of him causing the outlaw to fall to his knees. There was something weird about the handcuffs he was wearing, not to mention the fact that he still had been deprived of breakfast. "Ugh," Brizan grunted. "This is the worst day ever!"

* * *

><p>An: First of all, I am really glad that I finally got to get back to the rifts and focus on fleshing out the more comedic aspects of all three though most of my attention went to all of Brizan's quirks and distinguishing whale from a certain other overly optimistic and laid back character by displaying his prankster side. Also, to the person who submitted Unagi, if you ever come back to , I hope you like the direction I went with the conman. I couldn't go much into his personality this chapter because he was too busy being tortured an hiding his true identity.

Now I know what you guys are thinking "Wait they aren't pirates?" Nope, They aren't. And yea that's all I am going to tell you guys for now. In other news, there is a poll on my profile page, vote. Also, you guys can send us questions and we will try to answer some in our author's notes just like Oda's SBS corner. You can write your question in the reviews or you could PM me, Whalebert or Kairakara101. We will answer all sorts of questions, even jokes.

Wow this chap took nearly two months to come out which was way longer than I originally expected. I mainly blame my beta reader (Rose'ire trinity or something hard to spell like that) for taking three whole days of her life and going on vacation when I'm trying send her my chap. So you thank her for being so long by reading her story, Jolly Rogers and Seagulls of Justice. Also, we would really appreciate reviews and feedback since, you know, we spend hella lotta time writing... so it will be cool if you guys reviewed. Now get ready for part 2 in a couple of weeks!

Oh and Zane... quit being such a baby, I know the general direction that you live in.


	29. Rift Pirates Chapter 3 Part 2

Disclaimer: We may not own one piece but that doesn't give you an excuse to not review about these awesome characters!

The Not-Quite-Adventure on Smokey Top Island!

By: Orrahn

The sun's piercing yellow glare caused a white blob to obscure Brizan's vision. "Stupid sun, always being bright and shit," Brizan grumbled, his feet dragging while he trudged along the rough dirt road that led from the village to the marine base. After his vision finally cleared with a couple of uncomfortable blinks, the outlaw looked around him to see three men and one woman assigned to guard him. A group of eight marines, mostly male, was in front escorting the much more imposing Bert. Butterfield, in all his pink haired glory, led the way with a chained up and gagged Orrahn slung over his shoulder. Butterfield also had two men and a woman directly behind him. Unagi was also present directly next to Butterfield and was currently poking the chained up Orrahn with a vengeful grin. The rest of the marines, however were either left to their posts back in the town or assigned to inspect the ship

"Wow that lake looks sick guys!" Bert exclaimed loudly from around a curve between two of the rounded yellow mountains as if completely oblivious to the situation at hand. Brizan's guards led him around the curve to reveal a rather large lake with pink water nestled between several mountains.

"Looks like pink lemonade," Brizan commented only for the growl of his still breakfast-deprived stomach to distract his thoughts from the lake and back to how the ship was completely out of any breakfast food. The thoughts sickened him still.

"Lots of people say that, but in actuality it is not," the woman guarding Brizan said with a slight air of righteousness which came off to Brizan as annoyingness. The woman seemed to be around Brizan's age but was about five inches shorter. She had emerald green eyes, freckles and long wavy orange hair that was tied back into a pony tail that went through the back of her marine hat, though a couple of exposed bangs raced down towards her eyebrows. Unlike the majority of the marines there, she did not wear the basic white and blue sailor's garb, but instead wore her own custom uniform. Her attire included a suit of the deepest, smoky purple with an emerald green tie and a dark gray dress shirt underneath. Her pants were the same smoked purple as her shirt while her boots and fingerless gloves were the dark gray of her undershirt. Basing his guess on her unique uniform but lack of the officer jacket, Brizan was able to deduce that her rank was between that of a Petty Officer and a Warrant Officer. Upon looking through the crowd, the outlaw spotted four others who donned the unique uniform. Two of these guarded Bert, one stood directly behind Butterfield and the last was the captain himself who wore his own glorious golden suit with a lavender undershirt matching his hair. His own Officers jacket was draped over his shoulders to signify his elite ranking.

All this observing almost made Brizan forget how much the woman's answer annoyed him. "You know, if you are going to correct me, at least tell me why the water is pink," Brizan replied in a rather agitated tone that he hoped reached his guards.

"I don't see why I have to give a good answer to a criminal," the woman scoffed with her nose high into the air as if she had accomplished some magnificent feat.

"But Chief Petty Officer, this one is innocent remember?" one of the marines guarding Brizan remarked. This one was a man with a scruffy salt and pepper beard.

A chorus of laughter erupted among the group before another marine spoke up. "I'm pretty sure that famed mass murderer 'Red Apple' Braeburn said the same thing the other week even though he was covered in blood," a fat marine with massive blond sideburns pitched in, causing another outburst of laughter.

"And don't forget about 'Gunblade' Hexxon who we caught just last week. Even though there were numerous witnesses to affirm the opposite," the chief petty officer added with the same air of righteousness that made the breakfast-less outlaw sick to his stomach. "Though I suppose we have you to thank for that one now, don't we Brizan 'The Abridged'? " The woman scoffed, quite aware of what had happened in the _Euphrates_ Casino.

"Then how about letting us go then? We did do you a favor after all," Brizan retorted before letting out a sly smile. "Or at least you could see it that way, because we really did it for all the innocent bystanders who could have faced devastating injury in such a… catastrophe…" Brizan drew on while simultaneously impersonating the woman's tone of righteousness. That was when the outlaw realized where he had seen the woman before: she was the one with the crossbow who shot the map! It was all her fault that they had had to trust Unagi.

"Hey, quiet down back there. We don't need anyone getting friendly with the criminals," Brizan heard Butterfield call out, his eyes fixed firmly upon Brizan's own. Brizan looked away to see that they were now walking around the pink lake that had sparked all the conversation. The lake was surprisingly big on second glance.

"You should really let me carry you guys across the water! It'll be a lot faster!" Bert said with a huge smile only to be completely ignored by the nervous marines guarding him. They had absolutely no idea that the fishman was being completely sincere.

Finally, after a few more offers, all was quiet once more among the group. Brizan relished this as it was much better than listening to his guards talking as if they were so much more just than he was. Even though, as Brizan acknowledged deep down, they probably did a lot more good deeds than he did. Thankfully, Brizan didn't have to acknowledge these thoughts for very long because the marine base had appeared on the horizon.

Brizan had always made a point to avoid marine bases in the past so he had never seen one before. The base itself was a large gray dome with navy spots. There was a wall surrounding the three quarters of the dome not bordered by the South Blue with several gray and navy blue towers appearing regularly sprouting out of the barrier at various points. These towers were mound shaped like both the mountains and the town's buildings and reached so high that the smoke-like mist overcast appeared along its highest points.

"Stupid mist is only thick enough to be annoying. Doesn't even block out the sun," Brizan mumbled to himself, causing his guards to throw strange looks at him. "Nosy assholes," the cynical outlaw muttered in an even lower tone. "Mind your own damn business." Brizan rolled his eyes as the group came to the a stop in front of a large, guarded opening in the wall that was obviously the one and only entrance to the base from land.

"Welcome back to the 64th branch base, Captain Butterfield sir!" said a marine with a backwards cap and no less than seven toothpicks in his mouth as the commanding officer approached his base.

"Just hurry up and clear us, Chore Boy! We have prisoners with us!" said Butterfield in a rather rude tone. The captain had little patience for standing around when the man he has been chasing for two years was moments away from being locked up for good.

"I am a Seaman Apprentice, sir!" The young man said, his toothpicks protruding from his teeth at various locations. "A chore boy would never be permitted to guard the gate sir."

"Well… Seaman apprentice," Butterfield began, his eyes met those of the guard with a seething annoyance, "I could demote you to chore boy in heartbeat! Now let us through!" Butterfield said at last, much to the apprentice's dismay.

"Y-yes sir, r-right away," the apprentice babbled in a desperate attempt to regain his standing with the commanding officer, though all he did manage to do in the end was delay the process further due to his nervousness.

This was when Bert made his move, his massive hands swept down towards the apprentice. His guards merely gaped in horror, afraid he was going in for the kill and were even more shocked when the apprentice was left completely unharmed. "Just take it easy man. It will all work out!" Bert said in an encouraging tone as he patted the nervous apprentice on the shoulder with his large, bound hands.

After all these events, it was several minutes before Butterfield had finally entered the base and he was now busy talking on the phone with Captain Pringles of the Hiko Town Base on the Grand Line. "For the last time, I will not come hang out with you! We only met once in passing! I am not your friend!" Butterfield seethed in anger. It was impossible to find out anything of importance from this man. He had never heard of a marine who made it his constant goal to become friends with everyone. "As I said, I have been trying to get a hold of that large oaf of a commodore who runs the South Blue Marine HQ for over a day now and cannot get anyone to pick up. I just want to know if you have heard anything from him, like if the war got him transferred or something," the red-faced Butterfield continued, his index finger nimbly twirling his pink mustache.

"No need to be harsh," came a friendly voice from the den den mushi, which wore a pair of round shaded glasses. "Speaking of our old buddy Jotun, I haven't seen him for quite some time. I wonder how he is doing!" the voice continued animatedly.

"WHY COULDN'T YOU SAY THAT IN THE FIRST PLACE!" Butterfield exploded in fury. "THEN I WOULDN'T HAVE HAD TO LISTEN TO YOUR VOICE FOR TEN WHOLE MINUTES!" There was a loud crash he smacked the receiver back into the machine. "I can't stand that guy…" Butterfield seethed to himself. "Where the hell could that commodore be? He specifically ordered me to report any captures I make immediately, yet he disappears off the face of the planet the very next day." There was a moment of heavy breathing before the captain turned towards the others in the room. "Chief Petty Officer Majje!" the Captain called out, his face now purple with agitation.

The orange-haired woman stood up in response to her captain's summons "Yes captain?" she asked cautiously, fully aware of her captain's short temper.

"Please show these… criminals to their cells in the dungeon. I must report their capture to the judge and arrange their trials," Butterfield ordered his subordinate while he motioned towards the odd trio of captured outlaws sitting against the wall of Butterfield's office. First there was Bert who was still wearing his fancy fur clothes and golden jewelry that was only outshined by the blinding white grin he had on his face. Brizan was next to him, completely sprawled out on his back with his hands behind his head in utter boredom "I want those damn pancakes…" Brizan muttered to himself, still very pissed off about his lack of nutrition in the morning. Then finally there was Orrahn, the twelve-year-old boy who was currently the most bound up of the three criminals, though this was more due to the 'annoying factor' than the actual threat he posed. The marines had tried to undo the gag on his mouth at one point, but they were immediately barraged with a flurry of insulting nicknames like 'shrew nose' and 'fat fingers'.

"Yes sir!" Chief Petty Officer Majje responded immediately. "But… aren't all the cells filled right now? Since Buggy the Clown's Impel Down breakout, prison transfers have slowed dramatically. And with each passing day, new bounty heads are popping up because of Whitebeard's last words," the lower-ranked officer said to her captain with raised eyebrows.

"Well, there is not much we can do about it then, is there?" Butterfield responded, his hand rising to slap himself in the forehead in frustration. "Just split them up and fit them where you can," Butterfield ordered as he looked at the huge fishman before him. "You might have to do some extra shifting around to fit this one in a cell."

"Yes sir!" Majje responded as she moved towards the office's exit.

"Oh, and Chief Petty Officer," the 64th branch captain called to the lower ranked officer.

"Yes?" The orange-haired woman with the cap responded. Curious about what he could have possibly missed.

"Make sure you place the boy in a cell with wall shackles. I have had…. extensive dealings with 'Wildcard' in the past. He can be quite… unruly."

A couple minutes later…

"Yeooooow!" yelped one of the guards after facing a quick combination of toe stomping and nut kicking by a certain rebellious youth. They had decided to undo the body bindings on the thief so that they would not have to carry him down the stairs. "Sorry blondie, but I gotta go!" Orrahn said with a grin after removing the gag and making a break down the hallway.

"I'll take care of this," the Chief Petty Officer announced, her hands reaching into her suit's jacket to pull out a sleek and thin black crossbow and loaded it with a black bolt. Majje expertly flipped the ranged weapon up to her shoulder; she seemed to only aim the crossbow for maybe two seconds before firing. The bolt tore through the air at an amazing velocity before hitting its mark, right at the back of Orrahn's head.

Brizan winced as his friend fell to the ground, emotion beginning to swell up inside, just like it had when he ate the Utsu Utsu no mi. The outlaw was shaking with anger and lunged at the woman only for Bert's bound hands to suddenly catch him in the gut and send him flying into the wall before anyone could notice Brizan's intentions.

"He's fine, the bolt was rubber," Bert explained in an undertone which did not serve its purpose in the slightest since Bert's voice boomed across the hallway anyways.

"Thanks," Brizan mumbled, annoyed that he had gotten so angry, even if it was only for three seconds. He always had prided himself as a logical person and generally looked down upon those who would follow their emotions before using logic and reason. Now that the drama had ended, Brizan looked around to see that all eyes were on him and Bert.

"My bad," Brizan said to the guards. "I accidentally tripped into Bert's hands." He accompanied these words with an innocent smile. "That's what happens when you don't get to eat breakfast in the morning," the outlaw grumbled while he got back to his feet. "What is with these handcuffs anyways? I feel really drained... and I know it is not just my lack of breakfast that is making me feel this way," the blond-haired outlaw droned on. "And by the way, are you aware that I want some damn breakfast?"

Majje simply glared at Brizan, her face twitching in obvious annoyance. "Those handcuffs… have been specially made for devil fruit users like yourself. Don't even try to break out of them; they are as hard as diamonds."

"Wow, that's crazy," Brizan said as he gently pulled his arms apart to test the strength. "I should warn you though, Orrahn is the devil fruit user not me," Brizan lied in a rather sarcastic voice to make the lie all the more obvious. "I just want breakfast."

"Shut up about your breakfast, criminal. I know all about your fruit's powers and how you earned your bounty. You can't fool me," she said with a venomous hiss. "I will have you know that I have not eaten breakfast in two days because I have been helping Unagi plan the route."

"I didn't think you would be such a braggart," Brizan responded, wrinkling his face up to make a poor imitation of her voice which sounded more like a seal being kicked in the gut. "I haven't eaten breakfast in two days, look at me I am better than everyone else," Brizan mocked only to be caught in the stomach by the blunt end of a crossbow. He gasped for air for a couple of seconds. This woman was being really annoying with all the righteous talk, like the world was that simple.

The captured outlaw continued to glare at the woman as they moved through the hall. Orrahn was once again bound and gagged up and was being carried by the fat marine with the sideburns from earlier in the day. After a couple more minutes of walking with Bert repeatedly offering to carry the unconscious thief for the fat man, they reached a set of stairs that led down into the dungeon.

"These the new prisoners sir?" came a slightly familiar voice from inside the dungeon that sounded just like the speaker had no less than seven, no, eight toothpicks constantly poking and agitating his tongue.

"Yes they are, apprentice Sproutos," Majje said in a stern fashion hers eyes twitching in annoyance from being referred to as 'sir' yet again, though this was understandable considering she only recently transferred here and is the only female officer at the base. "We may have to do some moving around to fit the fishman in… wait, weren't you just on front gate duty?"

"N-no sir. I was just out there doing my midday stretch routine when the captain showed back up. That's why it took so long to get you guys through. I had to motion the actual gate guard," the backwards cap marine stammered out.

Majje simply glared at the man and waited for him to finish speaking. "Fine, I will just move the prisoners around myself," she ordered before looking into the various cells of the dungeon. There were about ten cells on each side with two people in each cell. And there was absolutely no room left.

"You should just let us stay on our ship, since we have plenty of room there," Brizan said with an extremely fake smile.

"Ohh, I like that idea Brizan. I built the _Moon Goddess_ myself you know," Bert pitched in with a big grin on his face.

"Like we would let you do that," Majje responded. "Besides, your ship is still being transported here."

"All the better! You guys couldn't navigate her anyways. You'd better just let Bert swim us over there and he'll take it the rest of the way," Brizan added with a sly grin.

In one swift moment Orrahn jumped backed to life, slipped out of the guard's grasp, awkwardly kicked him in the balls and slipped his gag off. "Woah now blondie! We aren't trying to crash her into rocks, you know?"

Majje reached back into her jacket for her crossbow, but was cut off by Bert. "Woah now. I'll take this little guy to his cell for ya. No one else needs to be kicked in the balls today and he is far too short for that tactic to work on me," the fishman said with his signature smile.

"Well I don't think I would have trouble with that particular issue," the marine responded in a curt tone.

"Heh," Brizan coughed out a laugh. "You are not nearly as tall as Bert!" the outlaw said in fake confusion. "Or are you trying to say that you're not a ma—" The blond haired outlaw's words were interrupted by the butt of a crossbow making contact with his gut yet again.

Amidst the chaos, Bert grabbed the little pest through his shackles and threw the delinquent over his shoulder.

"Put me down Whaley!" Orrahn whined in a high-pitched tone. "PUT ME DOWN!"

"Sorry kiddo, but you gotta go to your cell," Bert said in a ridiculously reassuring manner as he looked to Majje. "Which cell do you need him in?"

The marine officer sighed. She had absolutely no clue what to think about these people, the fishman in particular. She had never heard of a criminal who seemed so… bubbly. "Third cell on the right," she ordered as she motioned for Sproutos to grab the keys and unlock the door for the fishman. The two prisoners inside both eyed the new arrivals with curiosity, there was only supposed to be two people per cell due to how small they were. "He needs to be in this one so he can be chained up," Majje explained. "I have heard many stories about this kid's feats in the art of picking locks." Two marines took the squirming thief from Bert and chained him up. "Next, we need to move people around to make room for you and 'The Abridged'... and before you ask for the hundredth time, yes I will go see about food."

**Several moments later…**

A rough, grainy and horrendously out of tune voice filled the dungeon with song. 'Not again' Brizan thought to himself while rolling his eyes. He already could not stand one of his two cellmates, who was a low ranking crew member of Hexxon's who showered him with insults and jeers the moment he entered the cell. The other one, while not a bad person, had an insanely thick accent and could not sing on key even if his life depended on it. On top of this, he always insisted on singing the obscure and usually straight up weird music of his native island.

"_Monkey married to baboon seestah  
>Kiss 'is lips and make eet bleestah<br>What you think 'dey had for deennah  
>Black eye peas and monkey leevah<br>Conch style, oh aunt Johnnay  
>Conch style, oh aunt Johnnay<em>"

The roughly accented voice sang in the slowest tempo that his lungs would allow. The man was much older than Brizan, probably in his late forties or early fifties, and had very dark brown skin. Unlike the new arrivals, he was already fitted into his full prison garb, black stripes and all. He was bald on top but had a scruffy salt and pepper beard along his chin that extended into sideburns. It was also worthy to note that he had a rather large gut, though this did not make the man look soft and unimposing, instead the man's physique gave off an aura of physical toughness and compact power.

It was at this moment that Brizan noticed something odd that the thick accent had distracted him from earlier. The man wore no handcuffs. In fact, he had no hands! Brizan's eyes darted downwards to spot the man's ankles being bound by the exact same type of cuffs that bound his own wrists. "Say….um sir" the out-of-luck outlaw said while desperately trying to remember one of those 'polite' words that younger people were supposed to use when talking to someone much older and wiser than themselves (especially if they wanted to get some answers out of the stubborn old fools). "Would you happen to be a devil fruit user?" he asked. In his two years traveling the south blue he had yet to meet another person cursed by the sea.

"Oh yah, one of dem wicked fit, nuh?" the man began, his accent even thicker when not singing.

Brizan could barely understand the accent but from the man's expression, the word 'yah', and the question at the end, Brizan assumed that he was asking for confirmation that he was in fact thinking of the devil fruit. "Yes, a devil fruit, those things that make you unable to swim."

"Oh yah I ate mi one of dem wicked fits, I'm wotless in watah," the man explained. "Wanted to test da taste, I'm a cook, seen?"

His eyebrows raised, Brizan wanted his breakfast even more badly. "You're a cook? Are you any good?" the outlaw asked, completely forgetting about the devil fruit conversation.

"Da very best!" the man said with pride. "Da names Jerry an' I ran dah best restaurant aroun' till I got caught up in dees fuckery, nah meen?"

"Oh, so you aren't a pirate like the majority of these guys?" Brizan asked with curiosity, he had assumed that everyone here besides his own group and that murderer he had heard about were all members of pirate crews. Brizan had heard tales of other devil fruit users from the South Blue like Eustass "Captain" Kid and even the occasional marine with a fruit, but he had never heard of an ability user who simply owned a restaurant.

Before Jerry could word a response, Majje appeared at the cell holding a tray of food that contained a very stale, but greasy looking slice of pizza and some water. "Here's your stupid breakfast 'The Abridged'."

**In a different cell…**

Orrahn flailed around with the desperate hyperness of a rabid Chihuahua. He didn't care how tight his chains were. He still had way too much energy to give up now.

"Hey brat," said a large muscular man with another wise bald head that contained a single, apple-shaped patch of red hair. "The sound of your chains makes me want to snap again." The man was chained up directly beside Orrahn after committing one of the single most atrocious acts in the history of the South Blue.

"What's that tomato head?" the thief said with a mischievous grin. "You want to…. snap!" His fingers snapped at the exact same time he said the word, caring little for the patience of his cellmate.

"I'LL KILL YOU! JUST SHUT UP!" Braeburn screamed, veins pulsating throughout his head and neck.

"Lalalalalala," Orrahn taunted, "what was that tomato head?"

**Yet another cell…**

"Bohohohohoho," Bert laughed as more screams came from the cell diagonally across the hall. "Orrahn sounds like he's having a blast with his new friend," the huge fishman said with a toothy grin.

"Would you just stop being so happy all the damn time?" said the man formerly known as 'Gunblade' Hexxon but was referred to in jail by 'Halfbeard' thanks to Brizan's handy work in the casino. "If you guys had never made a big deal at the casino, neither of us would be in here right now."

Bert simply ignored his cell mate and continued to laugh upon spotting Brizan in the cell across from him. "Hey, Briz! How's breakfast treating you?" he asked with unneeded enthusiasm.

Brizan simply stared at the pizza with a slight trace of sadness in his glare. "… I… can't eat this," he said with a disappointed frown.

"For the sake of justice!" Majje cursed in the only way one with her values could. "What is it now? Why can't you eat the breakfast I brought!" she pleaded. She still didn't even understand why she went out of her way to get a criminal food anyways. She guessed it was pity, even though now it was obvious the man deserved none.

"I thank you for your attempt, I really do," Brizan started, speaking slowly and solemnly, "but this isn't breakfast. Breakfast is eggs, sausage, fruit, bread, maybe even noodles at its worst! It isn't some greasy food loaded with cheese like this! I will be nauseous all day if I eat that!" Brizan's eyes burned with more passion than they had in a year.

"Dats da truut." The chef said, agreeing with his cellmate. "Got tah nyam dah good meal tah set up dah day." He continued, using his chef's knowledge to back Brizan who began to wonder exactly how the man even managed to cook without hands but decided to just go with it.

Majje simply chose to ignore this and continued to glare at Brizan. She had never met such a picky eater in her life and was beginning to shake with anger. "Now I understand why, despite your low bounty, the Captain wanted you to be captured so badly." She said while she tilted her head to the wall at the end of the dungeon that was only a couple feet from the end of the cell.

Once again, Brizan was surprised how oblivious he had been, just like how he took a while to notice his cellmate had no hands. 'Stupid lack of breakfast'. He thought to himself in the most spiteful manner possible as he examined the wall. It was covered in bounty posters, all of the posters were big shots with bounties above 15,000,000 belli, well all except for the eight posters of the 6,000,000 belli 'The Abridged' that were circled obsessively in various shades of red. The waist up image of a seventeen year old Brizan wearing a snow-patched jacket and holding a box of fruit looked as unintimidating as ever when placed beside all the big shots of the South Blue. A villager named Jevinal Walter was testing out his new camera and when Brizan was blamed for Wong's death that night, Butterfield demanded a current picture of the outlaw from the village.

Brizan wondered how odd all of his bounty posters must have seemed when compared to all the other poster. Brizan's eyes scanned the posters for familiar faces and spotted a smiling Hexxon with his full beard and 16,000,000 belli only this time his beard was braided and dyed a rainbow of colors as if he was partying it up at some festival. After this, he spotted the bounty poster of Orrahn's cellmate 'Red Apple' Braeburn which was an odd picture from above his head that his apple-shaped patch of hair in full form. He also had splatters of blood from his victims on his exposed shoulders, the man's bounty for wiping out two whole villages was a huge bounty of 28 million.

Another bounty to catch his eye was the 20 million Bounty on Blaster 'The Pangolin' who was a broadly grinning dark-skinned man with silver teeth and an afro with a styling silver pick sticking out of it. 'This guy looks way too happy' Brizan thought to himself as he examined this Blaster guy. In fact, he was so focused on the silver-cladded pirate that he almost didn't see the biggest bounty on the list. Right below blaster was a strangely familiar face with a huge bounty. Brizan couldn't believe that he had met such a dangerous man before or even that he had returned from the Grand Line after causing so much chaos in the South Blue just a month earlier. Smiling back at him was a man with shoulder length wavy orange hair covered in part by his feathered grey hat that was pulled down over his eyes by his left hand. The man's smile, however, was now covered by shadow, and there was no mistaking that Van Dyke mustache and beard combo. This was the face of a 42,000,000 bounty man "High Roller" Jagger Thorp.

"That Jagger Thorp guy," Brizan stated, completely ignoring the female officer's anger. "I thought he had black hair and was in the Grand Line." Brizan asked even though he secretly wished that he would not get an answer.

Chief Petty Officer Majje glared at him for a bit, annoyed for how he completely ignored her anger. "He… was at the Grand Line…" Majje began, the words seemingly slipping from her tightly clenched teeth. "But he is back now… that picture was taken a few days ago at Babylon Island. The very same day your group was on it."

Brizan let loose a long exhale, he sincerely had hoped his apprehensions wouldn't come true and closed his eyes. _"Bohohohohoho" echoed a distinctive laugh from the depths of his mind. Suddenly Brizan was back at that card table with 'Gunblade' Hexxon, Koji the merchant, Calmina wealthy woman from Pucci the City of Gourmet, Vindlewelt the noble and finally the man now identified as 'High Roller' Jagger Thorp raking in his poker chips as he won yet another hand._

"Um… If that is all, I must report back to the captain." Majje said as she straightened her posture and briskly walked out of the room.

It wasn't even a couple minutes after Majje left when a man with a carefully trimmed hedge of thick hair that was sculpted to look exactly like his own head with his real marine hat on top of it showed up with a scowl on his real face. Seaman Apprentice Bruscle Sproutos scrambled to his feet and saluted the man "S-second-in-command Commander Neehanny Sir!" He blurted out with such force that he sprayed his toothpicks all over the towering figure of the ten foot tall commander and the two marines standing in attention behind him. "H-how may I help you?"

Neehanny simply scowled harder than ever at the bumbling soldier. "Just tell me which cell the prisoner scheduled for execution today is." The man ordered, tired of his clumsy subordinate.

"Y-yes sir." Sproutos responded in obvious fright, "He is in the last cell on the left."

Neehanny simply remained silent with a scowl and moved to the last door on the left where Brizan was. There was several seconds of intense scowling between the breakfastless outlaw and the man man-with-a-head-shaped-hairstyle before the commander spoke "I am here for the retrieval of the convicted murderer 'No Hands' Jerry to transport him to the location where he will be executed at 15:00 hours.

Brizan raised his eyebrows as the handless criminal answered the summons "I'd love ta mon, but mi kyann tan wit dees tings on mi ankles." The chef explained with a frown.

"Well don't think for a second that we will take those off." Neehanny said sharply as he motioned for one of the marines behind him to unlock the door. "You two," He began to order his soldiers while the door slid open "hoist him up by his shoulder, you guys are going to have to carry him."

There was a moment of silent protest between the soldiers before they obeyed their ordered and picked Jerry up. "Oh and 'Abridged'" Neehanny began to order, his eyes directly on the also scowling outlaw "Your trial is also scheduled for 15:00, marines will show up shortly to escort you to the courtroom." The man said with the biggest scowl yet before pivoting quickly on his right foot and exiting the cell, locking it behind him.

Brizan did not even have a legitimate chance to ponder the revelation of his cellmate's crime before Butterfield himself arrived at his cell. "Ahem," The captain cleared his throat as he stared at his long-time nemesis. "Mr. Brizan, I am here to escort you to your trial." The man twirled his pink mustache while the marines behind him unlocked the door. "Now will you come with me?" the man continued in a tone that implied more of an order than a request.

**Several minutes and hallways later…**

The butt of a gun lightly smacked into Brizan's back, this pace was far too brisk for Brizan's slow-paced way of living. "Hurry him up men!" said Butterfield whose quick paced footsteps annoyed the outlaw to no end.

"So how is this trial going to work?" Brizan asked inquisitively, wondering just how fair it would be. On second thought though, Brizan realized that fairness would not even matter because Brizan currently possessed no evidence to prove his innocence.

"It should be over in a flash. It's not like I do not have tons of evidence against you all stacked up for the trial." Butterfield exclaimed with a sly smile curling up his lips. "But, don't you worry, the courthouse has several windows with a great view of the ocean.

"What a waste…" The soon-to-be-sentenced Brizan remarked as he looked at the marines on either side of him. "The marines at this base look a bit flabby, I could help this base become the jewel of the South Blue you know?" Brizan asked with a face that read 'You know you will miss me if I'm dead."

Butterfield glared at Brizan "How dare a criminal like you associate me with such a corrupt act."

"Well I should let you know that I could associate you with plenty of corrupt acts. All I have to do is wait for the items they confiscated from my ship. I am sure you will be quite surprised when they come back with all your incriminating records like your logs of the transport ship route that carried my devil fruit and your letters to 'Orange Storm' Jakin. That I just happened to find when I was at the South Blue HQ the other day." Brizan bluffed, trying his hardest to sound confident and arrogant.

"Nonsense!" Butterfield snapped back without hesitation. "If you were at my South Blue HQ office I would have known!" The man exclaimed before his eyes widened as he caught his mistake "…not that there is anything in my office anyways." He groaned on trying to cover his tracks.

"You're probably right, it would take quite the neat freak to keep organized copies of self-incriminating records anyw-" Brizan began when he smelt a scent in the air. It was an enticing aroma of more Pizza being cooked for the base, the kitchen was nearby. Brizan's pace quickened as they rounded the corner to see boxes upon boxes of Peo-Tai noodles in a stocking cart right outside of a door. The muffled sounds of pots and pans clanging seeped through the closed door, Brizan had found his salvation… too bad he was a bit chained up at the moment.

"Move along," said one of Brizan's guard, forcing him to start walking with a rifle butt to the back.

Brizan trudged along the corridor for several more minutes 'How long is this going to take?" He thought to himself just before the roar of his stomach drowned out all thoughts and consumed his mind completely. Butterfield was practically prancing by this point. He was beginning to think the day when Brizan was brought to his 'convenient justice' would never come.

Or maybe the day had not quite come yet. The group was only yards away from the courtroom's doors when an ironically suiting canon ball made its way through the fort's wall and sent a piece of stone flying at Butterfield's ankles. The base's captain had no time to react as he was flipped onto his face and knocked unconscious.

Brizan was unbelievably slow to react due to the daze he had been in for the day so far. Thankfully his hesitance beat the panic that ensued as people, citizen and marines alike poured from the court room and Brizan's left guard attempted to calm the people down. His other guard simply panicked at the defeat of his commanding officer and attempted to run before being elbowed in the side of the head by a panicking citizen who came to press charges for larceny.

Brizan shook his head, he could barely focus in all this chaos. He had finally gotten a chance to escape inevitable demise, he couldn't pass this opportunity up. The outlaw dropped to his knees and grabbed the keys from the unconscious captain's pocket. He never imagined that the memory of Butterfield clamping the handcuffs on him himself would ever come in handy, but here he was holding the key to his freedom.

Too bad gaining freedom would never be that easy. The handcuffs were bulky and didn't allow his wrists to navigate the key towards the keyhole. Brizan quickly moved over to the far wall and placed the key in a crack between two stones on a lower part of the wall. After several seconds of fumbling with the key trying to get it perfect, he managed to insert the key into the key hole and twisted his body for freedom!

The crash of the heavy handcuffs hitting the ground was drowned out by the sound of another cannonball slamming into the fortified outer wall, this one dealing enough damage send the entirety of that portion of the wall collapsing in the space between Brizan and Butterfield. Brizan looked through the hole in the wall to discover the identity of the base's unknown attackers. 'Probably pirates… they have been way too active lately.' Brizan thought to himself.

What Brizan saw couldn't have been further from prediction, sitting in the water around the dock side of the base were three large marine ships. "South Blue HQ?" Brizan said to himself as he read the large writing on the side of the ships. "What the hell is going on?"

Brizan's answer was another cannonball that slammed into the wall in front of him, causing the wall to crack and stones to fly from the base. He had to move… now!

"Stop!" One of Brizan's guards called out as he ran towards him. The outlaw recognized him as the one who tried to calm everyone down, though his lack of rifle, bleeding nose and scuffed up face indicated that he had failed in his mission. All he did succeed in was to be lucky enough to be on the same side of the rubble as the criminal he was supposed to guard. "Are you behind this attack? I was not aware that you were in charge of a pirate fleet."

"I am not a pirate, run away!" Brizan called out, hoping to avoid a fight "I looked through a hole in the wall, the ships are marine ships!" even though he knew from the determination of the charging man that his attempts at peace would be in vain so Brizan aimed a swift kick to the marine's stomach and then continued on his way.

The canon fire become more and more frequent as Brizan jogged down the hallway. Thankfully, Brizan and his group was never given prison uniforms since Butterfield was so tied up trying to contact South Blue HQ so people never gave him a second glance and worried about their own safety. The outlaw quick jumped to the side to avoid a group of oncoming marines before continuing his trek down the hall.

'It should be right around the corner' Brizan thought to himself as the aroma of pizza began to fill the air once more. The blond-haired outlaw grabbed his rumbling stomach, he may have been free from his restraints, but his true salvation was near at hand. Brizan turned the corner and stopped a moment to breath, free from the chaos. He had finally arrived at the kitchen door, and better yet, the cart containing the peo-tai noodles was still there.

Brizan grabbed a box of peo-tai labeled sausage and egg "I didn't even know they made this kind" the man said in awe while he casually approached the door. Even though he was sure the chefs would have evacuated, he checked the circular glass window just in case. That ended up being the right move because a single jovial chef was still there, tossing a pizza with his hands while he whistled as if nothing could ruin his day, and apparently that was true because he cared little for the trivial canon attack on the base. The man's head was round to top off his oddly cylindrical body. He had bushy blond hair that formed a crown around his chef's hat. He also had a set of thick eyebrows and a thick mustache that rested between a pair of rosy and freckled cheeks.

'Bluriiiiing! Bluriiiiing!' came the sudden ringing of a den den mushi. The poor lighting in this kitchen along with it being incredibly clustered made visibility very difficult. Strings of sausages and other meats hung from the ceiling, and produce was stacked in piles upon every shelf, countertop, and even the microwave.

"A call on the den den mushi! Oh me oh my when was the last time I received a call down here!" The surprised chef excitedly jumped about. 'Here's my chance' Brizan thought to himself as he watched the chef move towards the ringing snail.

The outlaw slowly opened the door, slipped in and closed it as quietly as he possibly could before ducking below a nearby countertop. "Oh phooey if this place wasn't such a mess I would already have found that den den mushi!" The chef chimed as he enthusiastically clamored through his kitchen knocking a large stack of hamburger patties to the ground as he moved.

There were more crashes as Brizan attempted to read the instructions on how to cook his meal, but all the noise made it far too hard for him to concentrate. After several more seconds of pans crashing to the floor, the noise stopped and Brizan heard the chef breath for a second before picking up the receiver. "Hello there! I'm sorry for the wait what can I help you with today!" The chef blurted, he seemed awfully excited to be talking on the phone. Brizan could not say he was the same way, he much rather people leave him alone to do his own thing.

Brizan peaked over the self and between two stacks of meat to spot the back of the chef as he held the speaker up towards his mouth. "No Polen you can't play with the snail right now! Hey put him down! He has a job to doooo!" Came a very faint voice from behind a fortress of cans where Brizan assumed the snail was located. Maybe the caller did not know how to use a receiver.

The chef stood there for several seconds, bouncing up and down on his toes excitedly. "HELLO THERE?" he yelled in voice that made Brizan jump a bit.

There was another instance of rustling as if there were some sort of struggle at the other end of the line. "Hey! About time you picked up! This is an emergency line you know? I need Dill!" A much clearer voice replied.

The chef was quick to respond to the voice's request, "Dill! Oh yes of course let me see if I can find a bag for you sir! It might take me a while but I am sure I have it around here somewhere!" The round chef sang as he happily trotted off to search for a bag of dill in one of the storage rooms.

"Thanks!" the voice responded, which made Brizan wonder if he even heard that the chef said he was going to get dill so he was obviously not around to hear the response. Brizan could not believe his luck, the chef had left the room and the microwave was free.

"Polen cut it out! I'm gonna tell Dill you are actin' up you sucker!" Brizan heard the voice say on the other end of the line as he locked the door to the storage room.

"Nice! Now just give me a minute and then we can play. This call is super important!" The voice rang again while Brizan examined the directions of the plastic-wrapped box a second time. The directions seemed simple at first glance but something seriously bothered him. It simply said to throw it in the microwave for a minute and then it would be ready with no indication to remove the plastic wrapper which Brizan would have normally tore off.

The kitchen invading outlaw picked up the speaker in his confusion. "Yo, have you ever cooked Peo-Tai before? These directions are confusing me." Brizan spoke as his aching stomach began to roar once more, make every word take an excruciating effort to utter.

There was more noise on the other hand before the voice responded to him. "Dill is that you? Hey sorry bro I didn't hear what you just said! And why the heck are you talking like that by the way? Do you have a cold or something?" the man on the other end asked making Brizan extremely annoyed that he had to repeat himself.

The voice responded slowly he lacked the energy to speak any faster. "I asked if you knew how to cook this Peo-Tai stuff." He said while he scanned the room for the microwave.

"Peo -Tai! Oh for sure that sounds fantastic right about now!" The voice responded happily, seemingly forgetting about his dire need of dill. "Is it packaged?"

This enthusiasm for the food Brizan was about to eat would have made Brizan lose his appetite on any other occasion but he had to stick it out this time. "Umm, yeah, it has a clear plastic wrapper on top… and I think the directions are telling me not to remove it, isn't that bad?" The outlaw replied, poorly disguising his annoyance for the man's tone of voice.

"Aye plastic wrap huh! I gotcha covered! The key is to get that stuff a heavy amount of ventilation!" The voice replied with a laugh that seemingly reeked of smugness.

Heavy amount of ventilation, yea sure, but the directions didn't say to poke holes or anything. "Uh, well I don't see any corners to lift up anywhere. It's all one consistent body, should I just bite a hole in it?" he questioned, sounding more and more annoyed the more the conversation carried on.

"Whatever it takes! Ventilation is key! Once you get that covered, pop that treat in a microwave and you are set!" The voice replied.

Brizan hesitated for a moment while he wondered how cluttered the storage room could possibly be for the chef to still not discover that the door was locked. After remembering the task at hand, he placed the speaker down and bit the corner of the plastic. "Um, alright I'm biting a hole in it now." He attempted to say though he was sure that his words were quite slurred and muffled by the plastic in his mouth

"Ha that's awesome man! By the way is Dill ready to talk yet? It is really important!" The voice returned but Brizan could not possibly care about this man's dill, there was breakfast to be had! Brizan deftly tossed the box into the microwave and turned the timer to a minute and pushed it in to start it.

Brizan heard a new voice come through the den den mushi and say something about oregano in their water or something along those lines but an excited banging at the storage room door drowned out the snail entirely.

There was a loud beep when the microwave finished cooking and Brizan popped the door opened. The starving outlaw reached for the box but pulled his hand away at the last second, it was too soon, the food would be way too hot right now. Brizan remembered that he had to get a fork anyways so he began to scan the room for one but the chef's exuberant banging prevented the outlaw from concentrating.

"HELOOOOO! ANYONE THERE?" The voice called out in a manner that did not even sound the least bit angry. "I HAVE FOUND THE DILL!"

'Ugh,' Brizan thought to himself, "this man has way too much energy…' Brizan walked towards the storage room as he looked for a fork "He said he needs oregano too!" Brizan called back, though his own, starved voice was far quieter than that of the chef's.

"OREGANO? OKAY, I THINK I IT'S IN THE COMPLETE BACK!" The chef called back the sound of glass being broken emanated from the room. "WHOOPS!"

Brizan ignored the man and continued to look through the room. Finally he spotted a sink with several soapy sets of silverware lying beside them. Brizan grabbed a fork and wiped it down with a paper towel while he searched for a fridge. He next grabbed a bottle of soy sauce and a bottle of water from the fridge and moved to the microwave.

The outlaw threw the wrapper into the nearby trashcan with a premature sense of victory and achievement, this was the final stretch! Next, he pulled the box open and released a moist puff of steam. A heap of noodles, rice, sausage and eggs inside showed him that the terrible chain of events that had occurred this day were now nearing a close. He poured a vast amount of the surely salty soy sauce onto the Peo-Tai, stirred it up with his fork and took a glorious bite. He savored the flavor for a second, even this hungry, he was not one to rush through things.

The next couple of minutes simply consisted of him shoveling the food into his mouth every time he was ready for another fight. He was beginning to feel strong and focused as he reached the bottom of the box but needed to drink his water which he subsequently began to chug.

The world around him seemed to come to life as the last drips of water slid down his throat. He exhaled and appreciated the moment. He was free and had eaten his breakfast, now all he had to do was free Bert to get the ship and Orrahn to find their stuff and they could break out of here!

Brizan let loose another sigh and walked over to the storage room where the chef was still searching for the nugatory oregano. Brizan let loose a smile and twisted it unlocked out of mercy while he walked towards the room's exit.

Though, no sooner did the outlaw open the door was his moment reflected to the ground by a rather large gut. "Didn't ex'pec ta see yu here bein' all likky-likky" came a familiar, but nearly incomprehensible voice.

* * *

><p>An: Oh snap, you better check that date but it's our one year anniversary. Whale, Kaira and I were all writing up storms to get out chapters out today but it looks like I am the last man standing. Oh well, it couldn't be helped, I had to finish this chapter even if it meant climbing over the dead bodies of my friends to do it. So here you go, this wonderful and special chapter filled (I might be lying here a bit) to the brim with action!

Oh and I am fully aware that many of you are not from the western hemisphere and that it is the seventh there, but guess what! Your time doesn't matter to me, take that Europe and Asia!

There are a lot of surprises and hidden extras this chapter, some more deeply hidden than others. In fact, two of the biggest ones are practically laid out there for ya, so I will be severely disappointed if the reviews don't address them. In fact, I may have to dig my co-authors up and collectively insult you guys with them, so I hope you read close! Also, Majje's full name is Chief Petty Officer Amaranth Majje, she is a transfer from the East Blue and Butterfield's current most trusted subordinate since Neehanny is too busy scowling to do a good job.

Also, you may have noticed that Brizan said his fruits name. Yup, he ate the Utsu Utsu no mi, but don't worry even if you look it up, you won't get the right translation because its a pun, just like a lot of real devil fruit names! So better luck next time, maybe the fruit's abilities will get revealed on 7/6/13, so cheer up!

There should be two more chapters popping up in the next couple of days from Whale and Kaira thanks to my dabbling in the necromantic arts, so get ready to read and review more exciting adventures!

Oh, and my boy Jerry is about to publish an Age of Four Seasons side story that you guys may like, so keep your eyes out for that. (No, I will not give you guys another exclamation mark, you haven't earned it... yet)


	30. Rift Pirates Chapter 3 Part 3

**Chaos Ensues in the Smoky Top Island Marine Base!**

**By: Orrahn**

**In the Kitchen…**

"Oh hey… it's you," Brizan stammered as he pushed himself back to his feet, awkwardly ignoring the handless stub that the cook offered him to grab. "You're Jerry right? Weren't you going to get executed?" he added in a casual tone that would subtly alarm most people.

"Nah mon, gots dem suckahs in dah face when dah boom sounded," Jerry explained, describing a similar but more personally violent situation than Brizan's own escape.

Brizan let out a sigh. "So why exactly are you in the kitchen? Shouldn't you be escaping?" Brizan asked, ignoring the fact that he too went to the kitchen instead of escaping immediately.

Jerry stared at Brizan, momentarily saying nothing, "A nuh mi to 'a step an' be all likky-likky," Jerry explained, completely unaware of Brizan's inability to understand a single word he said. "A true, mi jus' getting some food stuff, nah meen? Wished der be a chef here, need some bettah clothes an' a hat," Jerry continued as he began to walk around the room, opening cabinets with his handless wrists as he looked for supplies.

Brizan walked over to the door in the back where the chef was still happily humming while the resonating sound of glass crashing and breaking began to slow. He had found the oregano. "HERE WE GO!" he exclaimed with obvious enthusiasm, footsteps rapidly approaching the door.

While Brizan was sure the chef posed no threat to he or Jerry, Brizan didn't want things to get messy and he had no clue how unstable this Jerry guy may be. "Wait, the caller wants one more thing," Brizan started, having come up with an idea at the last possible second. "He wants your clothes, hat and all," Brizan explained, wondering if the chef was really so incomprehensibly jovial that he would actually go through with something like this.

"SURE, I GOT YOU!" the chef announced with an unnerving amount of enthusiasm. The sound of cloth being torn seeped through the bottom of the door.

"Oh, and don't come out here. The den den mushi is unusually shy; we may lose the connection."

"SURE THING BUDDY!" the chef responded with such clarity that Brizan had no choice but to grimace. The image of the fat chef grinning broadly and giving two thumbs up made Brizan nauseous just thinking about it. After a few more seconds, the door cracked open and some slightly torn clothes and a chef's hat along with jars of dill and oregano were pushed through.

Brizan grabbed the objects and walked over to Jerry, who now had a decently sized box constructed of crystal-like rock that was white with a green tint sitting before him. "Hey, take these," Brizan said, handing the materials to the now suspicious chef. 'What is that thing and what happened to the good he was looking for?' the outlaw pondered as he continued to eye the object.

"Tanks mon," Jerry said after a few seconds. By the time Brizan looked up to respond, the chef was already wearing a marine outfit topped with a stained chef's apron and a tall chef's hat, whose height seemed to have no practical uses. "Now mi can'a' go an' teif ya boat," Jerry said with a completely straight face that terrified Brizan.

"Wait… what?" Brizan stammered, hoping that he had misheard due to Jerry's overuse of obscure slang. "What do you mean you are going to steal our ship? How are we supposed to go anywhere?'

"Yah could come a long mi guess," Jerry explained. "Nah big deal."

Brizan starred blankly at Jerry a moment, making sure he was indeed being completely serious. "… Yea," he added awkwardly his arms straining from leaning against the countertop so hard for the entire conversation. "Let me grab that box for you," Brizan said, motioning towards the crystal-like structure next to him.

Jerry snapped his left arm forward and jammed the handless wrist at the box which began to crystallize around his nub, attaching it to his arm. "Mi hangde dis mahself, wit mi Kesshou Kesshou," the oddly accented and slang-heavy man attempted to explain.

Brizan simply nodded his head absentmindedly. It was definitely preferable to asking Jerry to repeat himself. The outlaw would rather not have to continue this nugatory conversation when he could barely understand the guy. "Ah, so you are crystallizing it," Brizan said in a tone of mocking understanding. "That is quite the useful power," Brizan continued as the bustle of footsteps near the door alerted him of approaching marines.

A booming and drawn out voice sounded from a little bit outside the door. "We still cannot find 'No Hands' Jerry, who was scheduled to be executed before the attack, and Soso Brizan 'The Abridged' who was supposed to stand trial today."

"Does it matter?" responded another voice. "In case you haven't noticed, the base is kind of under attack right now."

The first voice responded with no hesitation, "Of course it matters, isn't it odd that we get attacked at the same moment when two known criminals that the captain captured himself are conveniently out of their cells?" the voice reasoned, now clearer and closer to the door.

"I suppose your right, but I heard a seaman recruit say that the ships outside were from South Blue HQ."

There was a moment of silence as a group of more than two people gasped and bantered among themselves. "He saw wrong obviously," the first voice responded in a harsh, succinct tone. "Now are you just going to stand in front of that door all day or are you going to open it and check the kitchen so that we can get out of this base?"

There was a moment of distinct grumbling that seeped under the door before it creaked open, Brizan had already hidden himself under a counter but Jerry simply stood still, his right wrist on the large crystal box he attached to his left arm. "Dammit Jerry, duck!" Brizan whispered but to no avail, for the door was open before Jerry could even react, though the chances of that happening were slim to none from the start.

The door tore open. "There is an escapee in here. It is 'No Hands' Jerry!" said the marine who owned the first voice. He was a man with an obscenely large red-tinted nose and green dreadlocks. "We must recapture him before they can spread their chaos back into society!" the man commanded regardless of the fact that he was no more an officer than anyone else present with his plain marine garb.

About ten marines were waiting in the hall to prevent them from leaving when the chef began to yell from the closet again. "IT'S AWFULLY LOUD OUT THERE!" the overly happy man yelled "IS THE CALL OVER? CAN I COME OUT?"

"Damn this scum, he has a hostage!" the green haired marine cursed in frustration at the moral depravity of his perceived opponent. He was now inside the kitchen with two other marines beside his and the rest crowding behind him with rifles while the other marine held a standard issue cutlass.

Brizan took a deep breath and stood up. "That is right. Let us go and nothing will befall him… unless of course you guys would rather lose one of your valuable chefs," the outlaw threatened, trying his hardest to sound as confident and threatening as possible.

"HELLOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO?" the 'captive' chef called out agai. "I REALLY HOPE THAT CALLER GOT THAT DILL… AND OREG—"

"SHUT UP!" Brizan screamed in a vicious fashion that made his throat feel a bit raw from the force of the shout. "YOU ARE A HOSTAGE HERE!"

"OOOOOOOOOOOH! OKAY!" the chef responded, not losing even a tiny fraction of his overbearing peppiness. "I'M SORRY, I DIDN'T KNOW!"

There was a loud grunting sound as Brizan faced the closet that the chef was in to yell. The marine had begun to respond, but was clubbed in the gut by what Brizan assumed was a long crystal box. Turning around revealed to Brizan that his guess could not have been more… right, except for the fact that the crystal box was longer than he had thought and had managed to hit all three of the marines in the kitchen, knocking them unconscious against the wall.

"Dammit, fighting is so much riskier when we could have just walked out without a scratch," Brizan groaned in a low voice, a bit annoyed with how this situation was playing out.

Jerry, on the other hand remained completely serious, which gave him quite an intimidating aura despite the ridiculous chef's hat, which was now a bit crooked on his large head. The handless chef reached his free right arm to the handle of the marine's disarmed cutlass and glared at it. There was a brief moment of silence before a crackling sound started to emanate from it, causing the sword, blade and all, to completely crystallize and attach itself to his handless arm.

The marines in the hall cowered back, but remained mostly in the little side hallway attached to the kitchen where the Peo-tei cart was. Jerry used their tightly packed formation to his advantage and lunged his left arm forward with a stabbing motion, causing the crystal box to fly from his arm and into the closest marine's midsection, who in turn flew into the person behind him. This eventually caused three of the seven remaining marines to fly out into the main hallway and crash to the ground.

The marines jumped a bit when the loud sound of the crystal box hitting the ground and cracking resonated through their ears. Though purely instinct, this reflex did not end in their favor since Jerry was already on them, still completely straight faced and not talking. His crystal blade clashed with the sword of the closest marine. The marine did not even have a second to react as jerry ducked down to change his level with remarkable fluidity. His left arm snapped forward with a precise motion to catch his opponent in the gut and make him buckle over.

Brizan only had to watch that one attack to realize Jerry was a very experienced martial artist. He seemed to practice a form of karate that was much more refined, technical and precise than Bert's Omega Muay Thai, which relied on his great physical force, as well as Brizan's own abstract variation of his master's Winter Mantis Style, which focused on remaining unpredictable and catching opponents off guard. No, Jerry was what some would call an expert; he had obviously been sparring and practicing his forms for years.

The handless martial artist did not stop there, however, for there were still three marines remaining. As soon as his latest victim buckled over, Jerry quickly snapped his right arm forward, sending the crystallized blade spinning forward at an angle. The targeted marine quickly slammed his back against the wall to avoid the attack. Unfortunately, the blade was just long enough to make complete evasion impossible. It whipped by, leaving a large gash across the man's chest that caused him to fall over, clutching it in pain.

Now only two remained and the handless chef had already charged at the one directly in front of him, landing a kick square in the marine's chest that sent him flying back into the wall. The other marine took this as his big chance to take the criminal down and slipped behind him while the man attacked his friend, swinging his sword at the back of Jerry's head.

Jerry was apparently already expecting this and not only changed his level with lightning quick reflexes, the sword to flashing over his head, but knocked his hat to the floor to prevent it from getting cut while he was at it. The sword swing then came to a sudden and unexpected stop as both of Jerry's nubs pinched around the marine's wrist. Within a second or two of surprised silence and hesitation, a whitish green crystal grasper connected Jerry's left nub to the man's wrist while his right slid up to just above the elbow and grasped onto there. The next moment, the marine found himself flipping over the fighting chef's shoulder and onto the hard stone floor with a crash. The chef broke the crystal grasper the moment he hit the floor and landed a quick succession of blows to knock the marine unconscious before placing his chef's hat back onto his head. "Less go, yu a come wit mi?" Jerry asked he walked over to his cracked box and ran his stubbed arm over the damage to repair it through crystallization before reattaching it to his left arm.

Brizan kept his composure, trying his best to keep casual in case Jerry really was a crazy murderer, which seemed more and more likely by the minute. Brizan reached down and grabbed a pistol and cutlass from an unconscious marine. It wasn't his pistol, but it would suffice. He placed the two weapons in his sash and walked towards the door to follow Jerry. Brizan let out a sigh and turned back towards the kitchen. "HEY, COOK. YOU CAN COME OUT NOW!" he hollered, feeling a bit bad for all the chef had gone through in the past couple of minutes, before he made a swift and subtle departure.

**Elsewhere in the base…**

"Kekekekeke," Unagi laughed. It had to be a joke. The conman had gone through too much torture on Chinaboru and the _Moon Goddess_ to not receive his arranged payment. "Come on Buttercup, it's only three tons!"

Butterfield brought his hand to his face and let out a sigh. "Just be quiet. We are kind of under attack right now, so we can't deal with your personal issues," Butterfield reasoned but his attempts at logic were likely to be futile, considering the passion he spotted in the man's eyes. "Besides, we already gave you a lot of pancakes. Isn't that enough? And take that hat off of your head!"

Unagi stopped. He was currently wearing a white marine hat over his long, curly black hair. "A lot of pancakes?" the conman said in a dark undertone that reeked of evil intentions. "You call twenty a lot of pancakes? I ASKED FOR THREE TONS!" Unagi whined in a tone of voice that sounded more hurt than demanding.

"Well we are in a bit of a crisis right now, so either evacuate the building or shut up!" Butterfield said with his hand reaching towards the hilt of his sword in a rather threatening manner.

Unagi caught Butterfield's subtle gesture and took a big gulp. He wasn't about to try and fight a Marine captain, particularly one with sword skill of Butterfield's caliber. "Fine…" the conman seethed as he turned away from the small group of marines, "but don't forget that you owe me three tons of the most fluffy and soft pancakes in the world!"

There were a couple of seconds as Unagi disappeared from sight before a member of the group spoke. "What would you have us do, sir? The entire base is in a state of complete chaos," a marine with buzzed, blond hair asked, secretly hoping that the captain would give the order to escape the base next to the gate.

Butterfield twirled his mustache as he pondered the situation. It had only been a couple of minutes since he had been woken up by this group of marines and Unagi, though it was his job to be ready for any kind of situation and act decisively. "We need to make it to a communication room and give the order to destroy any and all keys to the dungeons. We have a lot of criminals who absolutely cannot escape," Butterfield began, his voice clear and deliberate. "Also we need to confirm these rumors of the South Blue HQ being behind this attack. Then we need to salvage as many ships as we can and flee the base from both sea and land. We wouldn't be much of a marine base if we let our entire fleet get destroyed like this!"

**Back in the dungeons…**

"AAAAAHHHHHHHHHHAYAYAYAYAYAAA A," a high-pitched scream pierced through the ears of the prisoners as the echo of canon fire thundered above them. "We're under attack! Take cover… oh wait, we can't because we're all gonna die!" Orrahn screamed in fake distress while he squirmed around in his shackles.

"CAN'T YOU JUST SHUT UP FOR FIVE SECONDS?" Braeburn roared in frustration. "I SWEAR, THE FIRST THING I AM GOING TO DO WHEN I GET OUT IS STRANGLE YOU TO DEATH!"

"Quit being such a downer Tomato Head! I am trying to have fun here!" Orrahn said with a big grin on his face. There was no point in being calm at the moment anyways. He was chained up. It wasn't as if the thief could escape.

'Red Apple' Braeburn's face began to reflect his namesake, while his cellmate began to make a variety of whoops and screams. 'He is just trying to piss me off,' he thought to himself as he took a couple of deep breaths. As badly as he would have loved to strangle the kid, he just could not do that when every last one of his limbs was immobilized.

"Hey, big guy!" came an overly enthusiastic voice from another cell. Braeburn turned to see that the tackily dressed fishman who had been brought in earlier was looking right at him. "Cheer up man! No need to get so red faced. Your head might explode and that would hurt!"

Braeburn glared at the fishman with pure annoyance. He had always dreamt of strangling a fishman ever since the village elder had first told tales of the elusive race on his home island in the Pauper Belt where he grew up. Though upon a second glance, Braeburn began to realize just how big this fishman was. 'I will just have to find a smaller one," he reasoned, warding off his nagging desires of strangulation for another day.

"Heeeeeeey biiiiiig guuuuuuuuuuuuy," Orrahn taunted in a rather mocking tone. "Calm down why don'cha?"

"Bohohohoho," Bert laughed at his friend's taunts. "You'd better watch out Orrahn. I hear this guy is a pro at strangling some punks up!"

"Its all good Whaley, Tomato Head couldn't even strangle a cat while he is all chained up!" Orrahn sang.

"Bohohohoho, that's true!" Bert replied as happy as he has always been.

More sounds of thrashing echoed through the dungeon. "I'LL KILL YOU, PUNK!" Braeburn roared in complete rage.

Orrahn simply ignored the man with a wide grin on his face. "Hey Whale, wanna play a game?" the thief asked as the sound of another cannonball hitting the wall crashed overhead.

"Sure, that sounds fun! We really need to get this place bumpin'!" Bert said while his half-bearded cellmate grumbled beside him. "So what do we do?"

"I will sing about what I see then everyone else sings with me. Then you pick an object and we follow. Ready everyone?" the thief asked without caring about whether or not anyone was ready or even going to bother participating in the instance of public humiliation, as Orrahn had already begun to sing. "I see a roach, do you see a roach?" sang Orrahn in a migraine-inducing, high-pitched voice while he swung his bound wrists in an odd motion in an attempt to point at everyone else.

Bert caught the cue and began to sing along with Orrahn. "Yes we see a roach, what do you see?"

Orrahn grinned at his successful attempt to annoy 'Tomato Head' even more. The murderer had obviously figured out the direction this game was heading. "It's your turn Whaley!"

There was a loud grunt as the massive fishman cleared his throat. "I see a half-beard, do you see a half-beard?" Bert sung in a deep baritone that was surprisingly in tune, unlike a certain handless chef. Bert flashed a quick but friendly grin at his cellmate, the man currently known as 'Half-Beard' but formerly called 'Gunblade' Hexxon. The man had a deep scowl on his face that wrought of resentment in its purest form.

Before 'Half-Beard' could do anything about the ridicule, however, it began anew with half of the prison singing along, this time including Hexxon's very own first mate, 'Dirty Fist' Holyfield. "Yes we see a half-beard, what do you see?" the group all sung together in glorious, unified chorus.

Hexxon again attempted to speak his mind on the matter, but was interrupted as a cannonball crashed through the door, smashed its way down the stairs, and landed fully on the ground with a loud klunk. "Ayeeeeeee!" screamed Seaman Apprentice Bruscle Sproutos, who had managed to stab his right hand with all twelve of the toothpicks in his mouth in surprise. He was just there playing hearts with three made-up identities that he switched into by adding and removing toothpicks. He definitely did not expect to almost die from canon fire all the way down here.

'Dirty Fist' Holyfield cared little for his guard's well-being. He was intent on winning this game at all costs, even if it meant that he had to play dirty. This was good for Holyfield because he always played dirty. "I see a cannonball, do you see a cannonball?" the ex-boxer began to sing from his cell that was two away from his captain's. Holyfield had his chest puffed up high. He was going to win this 'game' for sure with his remarkable timing, even if he did not know what exactly could possibly constitute a winner.

The whole room began to rumble as more voices than before began to sing in unison, "Yes we see a cannonball, what do you see?"

"Nice one man!" commented Bert to the man he had fought to the knockout just around a week ago.

Holyfield's chest could not possibly go any higher at this point. It was so high compared to the rest of his body that his head was on the floor. He was complimented; that meant he had won. There could not possibly be any other explanation.

"Who's next?" Orrahn sung with an intense amount of spastic-ness in his voice. His cellmate was now completely red from head to toe in fury, while tears streamed from his eyes. He was virtually begging the thief to stop this torture.

"I am," came a voice from the far side of the dungeon while footsteps made their way down the stairs. The footsteps stopped while still out of sight when a quick succession of muttering took place, ending with the sound of a metallic object hitting a table. The footsteps began again to reveal Brizan standing in front of Orrahn's cell in the dimly lit dungeon. "I see a key." He said with a sly smile as he brought the cell's key from his jacket pocket, he had absolutely no intentions of singing.

Much to Brizan's annoyance, however, the room was completely silent as if they were too intent on the 'game' to be impressed by the outlaw's entrance. The thief was the one to break the silence in a tone of mock disappointment. "Oh come on Blondie, you can't just say the first line," the thief said with a broad grin. He knew how to really dig at Brizan's nerves. "You shoulda said: I see a key, do you see a key? I mean come on!" The mischievous grin only got broader as the conversation drove on.

Orrahn's taunts were shown to be a success when Brizan narrowed his eyes and began to tighten his lips with obvious annoyance. "Yes I see a key that is about to be destroyed," he responded in a voice that was half singing and half talking.

"Gosh Briz!" Bert cried out with a huge smile on his face to contradict his slightly, but not entirely unsettled tone of voice. "Don't do that now, you win okay?"

'Dirty Fist' Holyfield's chest snapped back down with such incredible velocity that he gave himself whiplash. "WHAT DO YOU MEAN HE WINS? THAT'S DIRTY!" the man screamed with frustration.

Before anyone else could respond to the outburst, a static sound pierced the ears of all who were present. The sound of Captain Butterfield's voice began to envelope the entire base. "Attention all personnel. This is your commanding officer speaking," the announcement began, pounding through the receiver den den mushi on Sproutos's desk. The seaman apprentice was currently sobbing over how Brizan had ruined his card game. "I come with an urgent message to all active marines or unfortunate citizens who happen to find themselves in this base while we are under attack," Butterfield continued. "I repeat, to all personnel, this is your commanding officer speaking," the base's commander said, starting to repeat his message.

Brizan's eyes darted back over to Sproutos who was still sulking over his cards. "Yo toothpicks!" Brizan called out, not really waiting for any sort of response. "Where is Butterfield speaking from?" the outlaw asked with narrowed eyes. "Or do you want me to knock your cards on the floor," Brizan elaborated upon not receiving an initial response.

"I-it's just down the hall on the right…" the man stammered, spitting several toothpicks onto the table in his dismay.

"Dammit," Brizan muttered while Butterfield spoke the actual message. "We need to get out fast," he elaborated, even though he knew he was the one who had trouble doing any sort of task at a reasonable pace. "Yo Jerry!" he called out, the key finding its way into the lock on Orrahn's cell. "Keep an eye out for Butterfield! He will have to pass this place on his way out!"

"—that our attackers are in fact ships from South Blue HQ," rambled Butterfield's voice from the speaker beside Sproutos.

"Ya mon, mi got eet!" came Jerry's easily distinguishable voice from the top of the stairs.

"—civilians should exit the building from the land exit only," the captain's voice continued while Brizan dashed towards Orrahn and began on his locks, only to find that the key did not fit.

"Yo, toothpicks!" Brizan snapped again. "Cards… floor!"

There was a moment of hesitation from the prison's guard while Butterfield continued to speak. "—Officers Pisang, Williams and Cavendish please lead your men out through the land exit and to the town. We must not let it get attacked as well."

"F-fine, here is the whole key ring. It is the one with the green tape," the lone card player stammered in his own apprehensiveness as he slapped the key ring onto the table, forcing Brizan to run back out of the cell to retrieve them.

"Neehanny, Majje, Umber and Winge please report to the docks and board any functional vessel. We must not let our fleet get destroyed!"

Brizan was now back to Orrahn and fitting the correct key into the shackles. "Don't you want to be free too, Tomato Head?" Orrahn asked with a big smile as his feet hit the ground.

Tears just continued to pour down Braeburn's cheeks. "J-just l-leave m-me alone…" he begged in a week, stuttering voice.

"Like I would free him anyways…" Brizan commented to his freed friend, who simply smiled in response.

"Lieutenant Sepia, I will need you and your men to cover us from shore by means of canon fire." Butterfield just could not shut up at this point.

Brizan grabbed his first key and began to move it towards the lock of Bert's cell. "Hexxon, you are not getting out of there. Move out from in front of the gate," Brizan said coldly, his hand frozen only inches from the lock.

Hexxon kept leaning face first into the cell's gate, various parts of his brown half-beard were poking between the bars. "Come on, Brizan! Letting us go will increase all our chances of getting out," he pleaded, spit spraying onto his fluffy half-beard while he tried to talk with his face between two bars.

Brizan wrinkled his nose in disgust. "Yea it will increase our chances up until the point you stab me in the back, toss your head back and scream VENGEANCE at the top of your lungs," Brizan retorted, his pessimism leaking through once more.

Hexxon was a bit taken aback by this vivid display of imagery. "I wouldn't do that! I would owe you a great debt. I will even give you half the loot from my next raid!" he pleaded, hoping to sway the stubborn pessimist in some manner.

"Will half the loot of your next raid get rid of my bounty?" Brizan responded dryly.

"No, but—" 'Half-Beard' began before being cut off by the outlaw once more.

"Not interested then, get lost," Brizan said without a second thought. "Yo Bert, can you move this chump so I can get you out of there?

"Sure thing caps!" Bert responded with a grin and a bounded double thumbs up while he got to his feet and moved towards the door.

'Caps?' Brizan thought to himself, but his thoughts were interrupted as part of Butterfield's announcement piqued his interest.

"One last announcement: it has come to my attention that both Soso Brizan 'The Abridged' and 'No Hands' Jerry have been freed from their restraints. They use the Utsu Utsu no mi and the Kesshou Kesshou no mi respectively, so approach with caution. If you happen to see either of these fugitives, please report their current whereabouts to me," Butterfield stated with a tone that implied the utmost urgency. "Butterfield out!" A static pop signaled the end of the announcement and Bert was only now arriving at the gate.

"Hey bud!" Bert exclaimed with enthusiasm as his gigantic bound hands tapped Hexxon's shoulders, causing the pirate to back up a bit and turn around. "Just need to get you out of the way for a second champ!" Bert said with an upbeat tone that starkly contrasted with his actions as his bound hands swung like a massive club, connecting squarely into Hexxons back. The pirate didn't even get to say a word until he was sent flying into the opposite wall.

"He's not that tough when he doesn't have his gunblade is he?" Brizan asked his fishman friend with a sly smile while he unlocked the gate.

"Thanks man!" Bert said with a grin. "Now you just need to get these cuffs off me and we are good to go!"

Brizan ignored his fishman friend. He was a bit busy locking the door to the cell so that no one would get out. "Dammit," he muttered at last while he stared blankly at the key ring. "Yo picks, which key to Bert's cuffs?"

Sproutos never had the chance to tell him since his unconscious body was already sliding back down the stairs. He had tried to get out but seemed to have run into a certain chef.

"Damn crazy chef," Brizan muttered under his breath as he began to cycle through the keys. "Dammit!" he cursed as one of the keys got stuck in the keyhole.

"Cuyah! He's a comin'!" came Jerry from the top of the stairs in his rough, heavily accented voice.

"Don't rush me…" Brizan responded. There were few things that annoyed Brizan more than people telling him to hurry up. The outlaw continued to slowly try each key on the ring.

"Oh come on!" said a prisoner with red muttonchops and a bushy mustache. "You could have freed all of us by now! This is ridiculous!"

Brizan stopped what he was doing entirely and turned towards the prisoner. "Do you want me to move slower?" the annoyed outlaw said with a raised eyebrow. "You aren't going to get out either way. Why the hell would I release criminals who I don't trust? I can't have your crimes on my conscience, not to mention my bounty may rise," Brizan continued, his hand moving even slower than before while he got ready to try the next key.

"Seriously?" said another, completely bald prisoner. "Do you even care if your friends get out of here?"

There was a very pleasant click as the fishman's handcuffs popped open and crashed down to the dungeon floor. "Well he is already free, so you can go cry in a corner as I throw these into the ocean," Brizan said in the most venomous voice he could possibly muster.

"Thanks man! It's great to move my arms separately again," Bert said with a massive thumbs up that ended up being about as effective as an uppercut in knocking Brizan to the floor. "My bad man, I just gotta get used to being free again!" the fishman apologized with the same enthusiasm that he had with everything.

Brizan let out an annoyed sigh. "You were only down here for a couple of hours," the outlaw pointed out with a roll of his eyes.

"Yea, but we were captured about an hour or so before that," the fishman retorted. "Times have been rough on us all man!" Bert continued, not sounding the slightest bit convincing.

Brizan simply stared at the shipwright who had built _The Moon Goddess_. "…Whatever." He then grabbed one of the bars to the cell beside him and hoisted himself back to his feet.

"'Bout time blondie," Orrahn pitched in. He had somehow perched himself on top of Bert's left shoulder. "We'd better leave before the butterman gets here."

As if to answer the group's worst possible situation, Jerry suddenly appeared at the bottom of the stairs. "Ya ready areddi?" the handless man said with his usual serious expression. "Codeh, codeh! We depan haste, he areddi diyah."

Brizan's eyes narrowed, they were in too small of an area to all attack Butterfield at once and Brizan knew from an earlier confrontation that Butterfield had him completely outclassed in swordsmanship. "Bert, punch a hole in the back wall, we need to get out of here!"

"I am afraid that I cannot let criminals like yourselves leave this place, even if it is under attack," came a familiar voice from the stairs. Butterfield was now nearing the bottom of the stairway with his sword drawn. Several marines with guns, along with Majje and her crossbow, were lined up on the stairs behind them. "I will give you a chance to step back into your cells and hand me the keys," the marine added with a graceful gesture towards the cell doors.

Brizan took this 'chance' to give Jerry a curt nod. The chef responded with a nod of his own and began to pull the apron off his body, his two wrists pinched around the collar.

"There is no need to remove the apron. We could put you back in your prisoner clothes after this crisis is dealt with," Butterfield said with a voice of self satisfaction that the only people who could stain his otherwise flawless record were put once again behind bars. Butterfield felt a tiny bit of guilt for Brizan's situation, but it couldn't be helped. Only serving marines should have devil fruit powers since it was the only way to establish true order, even if some old men needed to be killed in the process.

Jerry's hat fell to the floor as the apron was pulled over his head. He then took the chance to step out in front of Brizan and into the middle of the thin hall between the cells.

This was the perfect chance. "GET DOWN BERT!" Brizan called out the signal to the fishman who was also lined up with them, but near the back wall. The shipwright ducked down low and got onto his knees. Orrahn then took the chance to jump from his shoulders and hit the ground with a roll. "OOOOOMEEEEEEGAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA A." The fishman pulled his right arm back as far as it could go.

"FIRE DAMMNIT!" cursed the marine captain, a finger pointing right at the group. "MAKE SURE NOT TO HIT THE PRISONERS IN THE CELLS!"

"FIST!" finished Bert, the sound of his fist connecting with the wall was drowned out by thundering gunfire.

There was a couple of seconds before the smoke from all the black powder weapons cleared in the dimly lit dungeon. "Where in the name of justice have they gone?" Chief Petty Officer Amaranth Majje wondered. All four of the prisoners had simply disappeared.

Butterfield was already on the case and ran up to the back wall which was now much more of a back pile than anything. "The ceiling must have collapsed a few seconds after making the opening."

"But, that does not explain how they managed to get out unharmed," Majje added to the confusing mystery.

Butterfield stroked his pink, curly mustache for a moment before spotting what he was looking for on the floor where Brizan and Jerry had stood just a minute earlier. He picked the object up. It was the apron, only it was covered in cracked green and white crystals. There were several bullets embedded into the epicenter of each of the spindling cracks. "So that is why they lined up," he observed with a dissatisfied snort before he returned to the back of the room and tried to remove some of the rubble. It wouldn't budge. "It seems 'No Hands' has reinforced the rubble as well."

"How will we pursue them?" Majje asked her commanding officer.

"We won't. They will come to us. I doubt they will simply abandon such a splendid ship," the man said with another twirl of his mustache. "Besides, we will be able to kill two birds with one stone."

To be continued…

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><p>An: Wow, I really got this chapter up way quicker than I expected. However, it looks like this arc has turned into a four parter. Poor Sorus will have to wait for a whole 'nother update… oh well. Also, if you have any more sbs questions, send them to whale, I think he is the next closest to finishing a chapter.

Also, I want to give a shout out to Oggytheogre321 for making us the awesome cover to our story. Credits to the individual flags of the Rifts, Burning Suns and the Oregano pirates goes to a college friend of mine. Make sure to check out some of Oggy's stories!

Speaking of college, I will be back up on August 3rd for RA training, so I doubt that I will get another chapter out prior to that. Now to the SBS! Start and whatnot!

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><p><strong>SBS<strong>

So what is Bri's DF?

Brizan's devil fruit was a small, round silver fruit with strage markings on it and is called the Utsu Utsu no mi. Utsu means either to strike or melancholy... huh? That makes no sense you say? Well of course because it is a play on the Japanese language, just like Oda often does with fruits like the Fuwa Fuwa(fluffy fluffy yet its power is levitation). Brizan doesn't seem too keen on revealing his powers either so this may take a while, he can be such a troll sometimes!

will u update Burning suns too?

coz its like an anniversary... so all crews should be done justice. Sorus will just have to be patient and let Brizan get the attention for a while since Briz had to wait from October to May for his chapter 3 and I am not starting on a chapter 4 until the chapter 3's are done.

who's this jerry guy with the debut?

Jerry is a friend of whale and I who created 'No hands' Jerry about 4 years ago when I created "Reaper" Brizan and Whale created Whalebert for our One Piece RP. The characters have undergone many transformations over the years including Orrahn going from a 16 year old with a cheesy speed fruit to the mischievous kid you know today! So, yea... check his story out.


	31. Rift Pirates Chapter 3 Part 4

**Kiss Jerry's Neck For Free Toilet Food!**

By: Orrahn

**Under the Smokey Top Marine Base, in the Plumbing…**

Brizan opened his mouth to say some sort of smart remark; it was always some sort of smart remark. However, this particular smart remark never came to be because a powerful surge of water hit the blond outlaw right in the face. There was a fit of coughing and sputtering while the wanted fugitive fell to his knees. "Da…dammit Bert" Brizan said at last, breathing heavily all the while.

"My bad Briz!" Bert apologized in his normal enthusiastic but genuine tone. Sadly, Bert was so distracted apologizing to Brizan that his head wasn't turned forward to see the pipe in front of him. "Oops sorry again guys!" The huge fishman apologized again as water surged over the group once more.

"Nice one Whalebert!" A dry Orrahn said with glee. Hanging on to the back of Bert's neck certainly had its benefits.

"Just… STOP!" Brizan said at last, he was tired of being sprayed by plumbing water, clean or…

There was a sudden crash as Bert's massive form fell to the ground and dislodged tons of pipes, many of these much less… hygienic than the last batch.

Brizan was speechless as he and the rest of the crew including the now exposed Orrahn were covered in urine. "Well… at least pee is sterile." Brizan spoke at last in a tone that feigned optimism.

"Yu a till renk bwoy!" Jerry added, wrinkles appearing around his nose in slight irritation at the smell.

"HEEEEEEEEEEEEEEY!" Came a boomingly enthusiastic voice from the other side of a labyrinth of pipes and plumbing that was immediately smashed by a frantic Bert attempting to stand up.

Brizan took a deft sidestep over a pipe to avoid a blast of water as he looked to see who the speaker was. He almost could not believe his eyes. If he did not know better, this was the same man he and Jerry had only so recently left robbed this man of his clothes and locked him in a pantry. Yet here he was, a chubby-faced, blond-haired man clad in marine blue overalls with a white undershirt. There was also a white seagull with the word 'Marines' embroidered onto the chest of the overalls as an identifier. The plump and ever smiling man also held a large metal tool box in his left hand and a large wrench in his right. "HEEEEEEEEEEEEEEY FRIEEEEEENDS!" The overly happy man shouted again. "IT HAS BEEN MONTHS SINCE THE LAST TIME I HAVE SEEN PEOPLE!" He continued with the utmost enthusiasm. "WELL THERE WAS THAT CORPSE, BUT HE HASN'T BEEN THE SAME SINCE THE FLESH ROTTED OFF!"

Brizan simply starred at the newcomer, unsure how to respond to the way-too-much-information he had just received. Jerry took this moment to step forward and say what Brizan "Kiss me neck, didn't we jut leave ya lok'ed up n' nekkid in da keetchin?" He said in surprise at the chef's reappearance.

The chef was quick and overly happy to respond to such a question "NAW, IT COULDN'T HAVE BEEN ME, I HAVEN'T BEEN UPSTAIRS IN YEARS." The chef-plumber responded before taking several moments prior to following up his response. "OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHHHHHH HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH" The chef-plumber continued with a moan that sounded like his spleen had just ruptured. "YOU MUST HAVE MET MY BROTHER QUATROS! HE IS A CHEF FOR THIS BASE! I AM ACTUALLY WAITING ON HIM TO SEND ME LUNCH!"

Brizan cocked his eyebrows at this response "Oh, so is he coming down here?" The blond-haired outlaw asked, bringing up the plumber's earlier statement that he had not left the plumbing area in years.

"OF COURSE NOT, COMMANDER NEEHANNY KEEPS THE TRAPDOOR LOCKED, IT'S PROTOCOL! QUATROS JUST FLUSHES MY MEALS!" The plumber said with a toothy grin.

"Zehehehehehehe", the thieving child laughed "You eat food outta toilet water? Your stupid, tubs!" Orrahn continued with a provoking grin.

"OH I LOVE KIDS, I WAS ONE ONCE! MY PARENTS ALWAYS GOT ME AND MY BROTHER QUINTUS CONFUSED, BUT I'M NOT QUINTUS NOVUS, I'M DOSTRAN NOVUS!" The plumber responded, ever so swift to go off on another tangent.

Jerry decided to pitch in this time "Ya bruddah nuh gunna send ya aneeting, he kinda lok't up n' nekkid right n-'' The thickly accented chef began before being cut off by the plumber.

"LOCKED UP AND NAKED YOU SAY!?" The happy plumber exclaimed, his face embodying the pinnacle of the surprise.

"Yuh, nekkid, bu-" Jerry began again only for the chef to cut him off once more.

"THAT'S JUST THE WORST POSSIBLE NEWS!"

"Jus leh me, finish. He'll be fine, lemme fix yuh lunch." The handless chef responded as he placed his crystal box down on the ground and allowed the top half of the box to recede towards his arms and become a crystal hand and knife respectively. He immediately began to prepare the plumber a tuna sandwich with the speed of a lesser god.

"A tuna sandwich!" Bert exclaimed, "You got to fix me one, those are my favorite!" There was a sound reminiscent of one of the pipes leaking though it turned out to merely be the massive fishman's fountain of drool streaming down to the stone floor.

"Sure ting, big mon!" Jerry said as the middle-aged chef whipped up another fresh tuna sandwich more suited to Bert's size and threw it at him.

Bert snatched the sandwich from the air with so much style that another pipe broke before he took a massive bite. "Th-this m-may j-j-jut b-wee duh bwest t-t-tooon-na swannich I've evah haaaaaaaaad!" Bert bawled, tears of the purest joy bursting from his eyeballs like cascades.

Assuming that Bert may have overreacted a bit, Brizan looked over to Dostran to see him also on the verge of tears. "I F-FORGOT W-WHAT IT WAS L-LIKE TO HAVE NON S-SOGGY FOOD!" The plumber turned to embrace Bert in their shared moment of deliciousness.

"Tanks much!" Jerry said with a slight smiles, his movements obviously energized from the compliments while he prepared a sandwich for Orrahn as well. "Ey Briss, ya wan' un?" The chef asked as the green-haired thief swooped down from a pipe to grab the sandwich with his mouth before swinging away.

"No thanks, I am not a fan of eating when I smell like piss." Brizan stated with his signature bluntness when the faint sound of a cannonball smashing into the base reminded him of the current situation. "Say Dostran, would you know where the exit to this place is? I know you don't leave but you should know where the way out is, right? You had to get down here somehow."

Dostran suddenly sprung back up to his feet. "SURE I DO, EVEN THOUGH IT HAS BEEN TWENTY TWO YEARS SINCE THEY DAY MY BROTHER AND I GOT HIRED HERE!"

Brizan starred at the man with a blank expression, nothing really surprised him at this point. "…twenty two years?" Brizan began "That is when the pirate age began, isn't it?"

Dostran simply beamed with pride at these words "YUP, THEY WERE RECRUITING EVERYONE THEY COULD WITHOUT EVEN MAKING US DO PHYSICAL EXAMS, EVEN MY BROTHER AND I WERE ABLE TO JOIN." The overly excited chef did not even stop to breathe before as he told his life story. "THAT RECRUITER LOOKED ME RIGHT IN THE EYES AND TOLD ME I LOOKED LIKE A MAN WHO CAN PLUMB. I SAID, OH MY HECK YEA I ONLY DREAMT OF IT EVERY WAKING MOMENT SINCE I WAS TWO!"

Brizan let out a sigh, this man's happiness was draining the pessimistic outlaw down to the core of his soul. "Just show us where the exit is please…" The outlaw said weakly, wincing at the thought of more of this man's happiness corrupting his semi-pleasant post-breakfast mood. This was not even including the constant smell of urine that rank from his clothes.

"RIGHT-O, JUST FOLLOW ME! I WILL SHOW YOU THE EXIT NO MATTER WHAT!" The jovial plumber exclaimed with a quick, overly dramatic flick of his wrench in the direction he was walking.

"Ohh boy, we really should get going now!" Bert said with a huge grin, stretching his arm back as if he was totally oblivious to the world of pipes all around him. Oblivious may have been a fitting term for not one, but three clean water pipes were broken by his need to stretch.

There was a sudden crash somewhere behind the fishman. "Hey Whaley, watch where your stretching!" Came the familiar voice of a certain twelve year old fugitive. "You broke my seat!"

Bert turned around to see a scuffed up Orrahn sitting on the ground Indian-style rubbing his head with slight annoyance. "Ohh, my bad little man!" The giant fishman apologized with sincerity.

The thief simply shrugged before kicking to his feet with a grin and leaping onto to Bert. "It's alright, you got Blondie good!" Orrahn responded in a devilish tone once he had secured his usual perch on Bert's shoulder.

Water was currently pouring off of Brizan by the liter. "Well, at least I smell less now…" The outlaw said with a feigned tone of optimism. "Well we better follow Dostran if we want to get out of here. Oh, and Bert goes last this time…"

It was a short and silent walk, or at least inside Brizan's head it was since he was so good at ignoring the eternal state of chaos that seemed to follow his friends around everywhere. Outside the peaceful, lonely world of Brizan's mind, however, the scene of the group walking resembled the deepest fears of any meticulous plumbing planner. The trail Bert walked had become pipergeddon with only broken porcelain to paint a picture of what functional framework of apparatuses had previously stood in the massive fishman's wake. As if attempting to worsen the havoc around them, Orrahn was currently swinging back and forth Bert's broad back by his neck while singing some sort of make shift pipe-smashing song. "_To the left, to the right, everywhere he steps is broken pipe delight."_

Just a few steps ahead, Jerry added to Orrahn's chanting with a much-needed encore of _Conch Style_, his rough, out of tune voice not even coming close to blending smoothly with the thief's. _"__Conch style, oh aunt Johnnay, Conch style, oh aunt Johnnay." _The plump, but fit handless chef sung in a gratingly slow tempo.

Further ahead of the group, the ever-jovial Dostran was happily humming hymns to himself as he led the group to the exit. "HERE WE ARE!" He said as he flung his wrench at a trapdoor on top of a small flight of wooden stairs. "GOOD LUCK GETTING THROUGH THERE, COMMANDER NEEHANNY INSTALLED SIX LAYERS OF STEEL BEHIND THAT TO PREVENT IT FROM BEING BROKEN THROUGH! THERE ARE THREE OTHER EXITS BLOCKED OFF JUST LIKE THIS, ONE IN EACH QUADRANT!"

"WOW!" Bert exclaimed, "I CANT EVEN PUNCH THROUGH SIX LAYERS OF STEEL!" His voice boomed in genuine surprise.

"You could probably stumble through it though…" Brizan responded, ever-quick on the sarcastic retort. There was a brief moment of silence where the outlaw let his comment sink in before continuing to input an actual suggestion. "I bet you could punch through a non-reinforced floor though. Is there any sort of ledge or boost that can support Bert's weight while he punches the ceiling?" Brizan asked a smiling Dostran,

Dostran smiled blankly for a moment before suddenly snapping back to attention "OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHHHHHHH HHHHHHHHHHH" He screamed as if going through another imaginary spleen rupture. "I GOT IT, THE CENTRAL SUPPORT FOR THE BUILDING SHOULD WORK!" The man said with a hop to his step before briskly walking over to pick up his wrench and leading the group away.

Many broken pipes and a couple of ridiculous folk songs later, the group had reached a massive stone and metal structure that rose over twenty to and through the ceiling of this underground plumbing area. There were several metal arms sticking out of the first half of the cylindrical structure to help stabilize and reinforce it. There was a creek as Bert began to pull himself onto one of the structures about ten feet up from the ground. "Wait a second Bert!" Brizan called out to stop the fishman before the worst happened. Once the massive being stopped, Brizan motioned to Jerry "Do you think you could reinforce that arm for him real quick?"

"Sure ting' Bris bwoy." The handless devil-fruit user said while he took a moment to fix his chef hat with his nubs before jumping onto one of the lower bars so that he could hop to the next highest one until he reached the particular arm Bert was going for. The chef moved along the bar with surprising amount of dexterity given his gut. Once he reached the arm's point of connection with the central structure, the chef placed his nubs on the area and waited a moment as it all became bound in green-tinted crystal. The chef then leaped down and did the same with the arm's connection to the floor.

"Thanks Jerry, now it's all yours Bert."

"Gotcha!" Bert responded as he pulled himself up and squatted down so his sixteen foot frame wouldn't cramp up against the ceiling prior to pulling his fist down as low as it could possibly go. "Oh wait, I got an Idea!" The fishman suddenly exclaimed.

"What is it?" Brizan asked but Bert was not paying attention.

"Sorry Briz!" The carpenter responded with his usual grin, he took a moment to adjust his fluffy white hat and navy-tinted sunglasses before swinging his arms out blindly. No less than ten pipes broke in the sudden burst of mayhem.

"Oh son of a-" The outlaw began, but it was too late as more water, and a little bit of pee, than ever before rained down on the group. Thankfully this was all fresh water, or there would be two very unhappy devil-fruit users in the group.

Even if it was freshwater, however, Bert could still use it to strengthen his attacks like any good fishman could. "EIGHTY PERCENT!" He began, rearing his arm back in preparation. "OMEGA TORRENT FIST!" Like a god of water, the liquid rose with his fist to turn his arm into a single water propelled rocket. The punch blasted through the several layers of stone ceiling with enough force to send most of the rubble up with it. Rubble that seemed to catch someone above by complete surprise for a loud yelp pierced the group's ears. Before anyone said anything, however, a massive hand reached down towards Brizan's group to help them up. Orrahn and Jerry had already begun hopping from bar to bar in a race to reach the top by this point, so the only person left to grab on was Brizan.

"SEE YA LATER FRIEND! I HOPE YOU ACHIEVE WHATEVER DREAMS YOU HAVE! MAYBE THEN YOU COULD BE HAPPY LIKE ME!" Dostran shouted after his newfound 'friends'.

Brizan felt a little bit of vomit enter his mouth while he hoisted himself onto the fishman's shoulders, which were then elevated to bring him to the surface. All this happiness that had been surrounding him this day had drained him to the point that all he wanted to do was push a punk into a stormy ocean. It was at this moment that the outlaw realized he had better warn Dostran about the attack on the base. "Dostran, this base is under attack! You might want to evacuate!"

"NO THANKS, I LIKE PLUMBING!" Dostran responded so quickly that it was entirely possible that he did not understand what Brizan was saying.

"Conscience cleared…" Brizan commented to himself under his breath as he climbed onto the stone floor beside Jerry and Orrahn.

Bert then attempted to pull himself up as well, but seemed to have trouble due to the difficulty in finding a good grip on the flooring. Brizan and Jerry, however were all over this and used their combined strength to give Bert the extra boost he needed. With one last combined effort, Bert brought his knees onto the floor and fell forward.

The group laid there for a moment before a startled voice pretending to sound tough and confident spoke up. "H-hey, ahem, I mean what do you think you are doing out of your cells!"

Brizan looked around for the source of the voice to find out that he was in a bathroom which explained the pee. Brizan looked at the area directly in front of him. The outlaw was just outside of a stall and could see the gaping hole in front of him that spread under three different stalls. The source of the voice itself came from the odd, face-shaped monument of hair that poked out from behind the toilet directly in front of him. Brizan took this moment to spot a gun that was conveniently on the ground in front of him and pick it up. "All according to plan," Brizan said with a smugness so fake that he threw up in his mouth a little more. "Now, I suggest that you cooperate Commander Neehanny. I do have a gun after all."

The ten foot tall marine officer stood up and stepped out from behind the toilet. The ridiculous looking marine with a hairstyle modeled after his own head quickly pulled up and buttoned his pants as he stood. "Looks like you are every bit as evil as Captain Butterfield said you were…" The marine commented with a sneer, realizing that he could not do much while on the other side of a several foot hole.

"Yea," Brizan began in an odd combination of dismissal and agreement. "Now take us to Captain Butterfield's Office… and the room our weapons and possessions are being kept…. And our ship." The outlaw began naming the things he needed for their voyage as he thought of them.

The Commander suddenly seemed a lot calmer and had a slightly smug expression on his face. Neehanny took a moment raise his right foot before pressing it against the floor and pivoting it with all his might. A sound reminiscent of the grinding of gears echoed through the bathroom and suddenly Brizan and co were pinned against the wall while Neehanny, the toilet and the exit to the stall where on the other side of the hole in the floor. "Soh's yoo gos sum majic voodoo, don't yoo?" Jerry spoke first.

"That's what you get for messing with a pivot man!" Neehanny shrieked, obviously proud of himself.

"I still got my gun point-" Brizan began, about to remind Neehanny that his advantage had not been removed when he registered the commanders words and dropped the gun in a fit of laughter. "You are joking right? A p-pivot man? S-so you ate a p-pivot fruit!?" He gasped out through his unrelenting laughter.

Neehanny seemed quite offended by the blond outlaw's mocking of his powers. "W-why yes I did, do you have an issue with that Mr. Abridged?" The ridiculous looking marine officer said as he took his right index finger like he was pressing glasses back to his face if he were in fact wearing glasses.

Brizan finally regained his calm by this point. "And I thought my fruit was limiting, yours is pretty much useless." The outlaw then turned to his fishman carpenter friend "Hey Bert, could you do me a favor and throw Orrahn at him?" He asked with a completely straight face.

"Sure thing bossman!" Came an enthusiastic response.

"Wait… wha-" Neehanny did not get much time to think before getting a face full of Orrahn that knocked him to the ground with the thief on top of him.

"Nice!" Brizan complimented Bert's aim as he took a three-step-run head start before launching himself over the hole in the ground. Brizan turned to over to a disoriented Neehanny. "Now tell us where Butterfield's office is…"

**A few minutes later in front of Butterfield's office…**

A soft click signaled the successful unlocking of the large wooden door before the group. "Coulda jus' clubbed dat lil' door meself." Jerry commented, pointed out the uselessness of having Neehanny with them.

"Well, he could be leading us into a trap." Brizan pointed as he motioned for the Commander to open his door with his pistol.

The commander obliged with a grimace and slowly opened the door. "I am telling you this is it! I don't know why you would want in here anyways, he wouldn't keep anything valuable at this branch!" Neehanny whined. "Just let me go, I have things to do!"

Brizan didn't say a word; he just motioned for Bert to look inside. "All clear buddy!" The fishman said with a powerful surge of enthusiasm.

Brizan turned to Neehanny and waved the gun at him, "get out of here." He said in a tone that sounded like he wanted nothing more than for the commander to be out of his sight.

The pivot-man was quick to oblige and pivoted his way out of the hall without saying another word.

"Hey blondie! Weren't you going to ask him where the weapons and supplies were?" Orrahn said in a rather taunting voice to mock his friend's mistake.

"Ugh… whatever," the outlaw replied "We will just split up once we are done here. I am sure we can find some marines to help." Brizan then took a moment to scan the room, it was quite fancy. The room had polished wooden floors that were so clean that Brizan's own reflection was shone in the wood .The walls of the circular room were filled books of all kinds from history to cheesy merfolk romance novels that made Brizan chuckle upon seeing the title. The center of the room had a decently sized pedestal protruding from the floor with a matching protrusion from the ceiling so that a large globe of the world could be mounted in between the two pedestals on a pole. Of course, Brizan could not make out the details of the globe because Orrahn had already begun to spin the sphere as fast as he could. Behind this was a large polished wooden desk with neatly organized stacks of at the left end. The outlaw immediately moved behind this desk to see that all the drawers were neatly labeled. The outlaw grabbed onto the handle of the drawer labeled 'maps' and pulled it open. He had stumbled into quite the treasure trove of cartography. There were maps of the island, the base, the area, the south blue and even a map of the world. Though of course this map was a bit distorted near the northern and southern extremities since it is impossible to have a map match the size, shape and distances of the real world perfectly with the scale. The outlaw took this moment to toss the handless chef the maps he had grabbed so that he could encase them in another crystal box.

Bert and Orrahn joined the blond-haired fugitive for a few minutes to look through all the paperwork in the office for any evidence they could use against Butterfield to clear his name. "Wow, another receipt for a large order of mustache dye! I could repaint the _Moon Goddess_ with all this!" Bert commented as he put another useless paper into pile of already read papers.

"Butterman has lots of girlfriends from the looks of it!" Orrahn squealed as he scribbled some likely offensive words onto the current letter he was reading. "They are all writing to a General Mustache though, I should mix up his responses!"

Brizan sighed, while these finds were entertaining, they were not what they needed. The outlaw pulled out a map of the base and laid it out on the desk. "We are in the absolute center of the base where all the officers sleep." Brizan pointed out what he was talking about on his map and waited for Jerry to walk over before continuing. "We need to get to the docks where the _Moon Goddess _is being held, but first… we need supplies and our valuables that got confiscated." Brizan wanted his pistol and the rest of the things he had kept from Strawberry's package back. "I know our valuables will probably be kept up here since we have not been here for long." Brizan pointed to an area fairly close to the docks but on the north half of the dome. "Orrahn and I will find those."

"I wanna go with Whaley though! You suck!" Orrahn whined tauntingly.

"I have never cared about a single thing you have wanted in my entire life." Brizan responded in a sarcastically cold manner before continuing. "Bert and Jerry need to go south and towards the docks from that side. There is a supply room where I am pointing. Get as much as you two can carry, we don't know where we are going next nor how long we will be at sea."

"Mi an' Bert'll gets all da good stuff." The handless chef responded before he and the fishman left the room and headed south.

**In the main hall of the southern half of the base…**

Bert brought back his arm in preparation for a huge punch. "Fifty Percent!" The huge fishman began as he clenched his hand into a fist. "OOOOOOOOOOMEEEEEEEEEEEEGAAAA AAA!" He tensed up and got ready to release fifty percent of his maximum punch strength. "PUUUUUUUUNCH!" His fist moved forward like some sort of dark blue, ring covered meteor. A meteor that made no impact, after all there was no conscious enemy to strike.

"Yoo's slows like molasses, big bwoy." A certain handless chef commented on the time it took for Bert to prepare his attack.

"Wow!" Bert commented as he examined the hall. "There were at least ten of them, how'd you knock them all out that quick?!"

"Tek-neek." Jerry responded bluntly. 'Technique' could be the only possible explanation of how a handless chef managed to have one of the marines screaming while hanging from a chandelier by his shirt twenty feet off the ground. The rest of the hall was just as bizarre, one marine was running around with half of his body stuck in a vase before he collided with the wall causing the vase to break and knocking him unconscious.

"Wow, I really gotta hand it to you, you pack a real punch!" The fishman commented with such enthusiasm that he almost did not notice what he had just said. "I mean thumbs up to ya man!" The carpenter said with a huge double thumbs up before his smile disappeared again due to his blunder. "I-I mean you deserve a high fi-"

"Fo'gets it mon, less get going while dey still cold." The chef said at last before the pair continued down the hall, they had now traveled about half the distance to their destination.

**In some random extension hallway on the northern half of the base…**

"Smoke bomb!" Orrahn chanted for about the fiftieth time as a cloud of particle briefly obscured Brizan's vision.

"Would you stop that?" Brizan asked, slightly annoyed at Orrahn's usual immaturity in a tight situation like this. "Where did you get those blackboard erasers anyways?" The outlaw pointed out the two erasers that the thief had seemingly produced out of nowhere.

"These are my smoke bombs!" Orrahn replied with a simple grin.

"Whatever, I will just assume that you stole them from one of the rooms we passed on the way here. I guess that is just your way of coping with the fact that the marines confiscated all of your annoying 'toys'." Brizan remarked dryly before taking a left onto a connector hallway. "I knew that most people would be using the main hallway, but I expected to at least one random marine we could ask for directions."

"Do you even know where we are going blondie?"

"Not really, I am just going in the correct general direction. I rather not expose ourselves by using the main hallway." The outlaw stated, "Oh there one is!"

The marine ahead of them turned around and spotted two people approaching them. "Excuse me, I believe an order was already given for all civilians to evacuate." He spoke in a rather official manner that was probably his way of compensating for being fat and freckled.

"Oh I am sorry, my boss just won't let me come back empty handed." Brizan began with a fake worried look on his face.

"Boss?" The marine looked curious but not quite sold on Brizan's story.

"Yea, he already made a major payment to Captain Butterfield for that package in the treasure room. He pays quite a small fortune for your confiscated goods." Brizan explained his fake bosses businesses while he tried to think up what to say next.

"I am sorry, I don't know who this 'boss' of yours is." The marine looked very suspicious of Brizan now.

"You don't?" Brizan asked with fake surprise, "I guess lower ranks wouldn't know how the base gets funded." The marine looked extremely offended by this point, but Brizan was quick to follow up. "I will tell you what, I will explain to my boss how you helped us and he will pass the word to the captain. Maybe after that you will be promoted to a rank where you could learn his name. All you got to tell me is where you keep confiscated goods.

The marine thought for a moment, unsure of whether or not to believe Brizan. After a brief sigh, he looked like he had finally taken the bait and was going to tell Brizan what he wanted to know when a large blackboard eraser hit him in the face. "SMOKE BOMB!" Orrahn chanted gleefully.

The marines attention suddenly snapped to Orrahn and then back to Brizan before his eyese began to widen. "Wait, I know who you-"

The marine was too slow for Brizan had already kneed him in the stomach and put his pistol on the man's throat. "Just tell me where I can get my stuff…"

**The reinforced wall bordering the docks…**

Lieutenant Cuttle Sepia stood boldly behind a row of cannons that blasted through tiny holes in the outer walls that extended like arms on either side of the docks. The thin ends of the lieutenant's gelled up brown mustache twitching in the wind like a pair of tendril-like insect legs. "FIRE!" The broad shouldered and bald marine officer ordered through a den den mushi attached to both walls with such boldness and tenacity that one might forget that he was safely behind the reinforced wall and in no immediate danger like his gunners who were exposed via the holes they were firing out of.

There was a crash as one of the opposing marine ships was hit by the volley of cannon fire. The first thing to go was the fore mast which toppled backwards onto the other one so that it too collapsed onto the now sinking ship.

"Odd…" The lieutenant pointed out with a twirl of his mustache as he looked through one of the openings with a pair of binoculars, "You would think that the crew would be diving overboard, but they just calmly wait for the ship to sink." There was, however, little time to ponder such questions as two more small enemy vessels broke through the reinforced structure on the other arm, causing a portion to fall into the ocean.

**Meanwhile, on the docks…**

"Dammit, what the hell is Sepia doing?" The esteemed Captain Butterfield cursed under his breath at the loss of one of the most important defensive structures on the base. Butterfield was currently at the front of a rather well-sized group of marines.

To the Captain's right was Ensign Ludwick Umber, who despite his name meaning brown was only slightly tan. Umber was a rather plain looking marine in his mid-twenties with a normal marine sailor's uniform save the kanji for the word 'justice' that was sewn into the back in black. The man had short brown hair and a pair of sunglasses that had such thin frames for 'cool factor' that they barely even covered the pupils of his comparatively large eyes that sat behind the frames. Umber's weapon of choice seemed to be a sign straight-blade long sword that he wore on his back.

To Butterfield's left stood Lieutenant Junior Grade Winge, 'just' Winge as he so often reminded his fellow marines. This, however only led to more questions as to whether his family name was Just or maybe it was his epithet since he had such a righteous soul. Winge was a slender man with long black hair and a beard who wore a monocle and a marine colored top hat. He also had a white tuxedo with matching pants and a marine blue vest/bowtie combo underneath. The Kanji for 'justice' that signified he was at least of ensign rank was written down the back of the tuxedo jacket in marine blue. Winge's posh and elegant style was offset by the thirty or so firearms of all sizes that were strapped all over his clothes. "Sir, excuse my mother fucking questions, but why the hell is this bitch here? She is only a fucking Chief Petty Officer, she is hardly fit to lead these shitty marines alongside us." Winge spoke in a sophisticated tone that created confusion since he also happened to curse so much.

"That's because she is a lot more talented than most of the Ensigns and other officers that are thrown about this base." Butterfield explained the presence of Amaranth Majje slightly to the right and behind Winge. "The only reason that she isn't a higher rank is because she only recently joined the marines." Butterfield briefly looked back at the group of about sixty marines with him. "More importantly, has anyone seen Neehanny? He should be here with us!"

"Yea I was with him in the officer's quarters when we got your orders." Ensign Umber spoke up "He said that he had to…" Umber trailed off to the other officer's expecting and slightly annoyed faces.

"He had to what?" Butterfield said with a tone of irritation in his voice that was only grew when a cannonball from an enemy ship splashed into the water nearby. "We don't have time for this Ensign Umber, just tell me!"

"He had to take a poop… sir!" Umber said at last, a bit shaken by the venom in his commanding officer's voice. Another cannonball splashed nearby during the ensuing silence.

"Dammit, we will have to leave him then!" Butterfield scanned the docks, there was a single standard-sized marine warship that was on a separate branch of the docks, two smaller ones that only needed ten to twenty sailors to sail, the _Moon Goddess_ and two small one to five man scouting boats. "Majje and Umber, take those two ten-man ships and-" Butterfield began before one of the two ships was destroyed by enemy cannonfire. "Dammit, Majje take ten men onto the remaining vessel and return fire before it sinks too!" The Captain ordered in his complete frustration.

"Yes sir!" Majje responded, already running full speed onto the ship with ten marines behind her. There were currently three enemy marine ships entering the docking bay.

"Umber and Winge! Go and take the standard-sized ship over there with forty of the men."

"Yes sir!" The two officers responded in unison as they began to run back down the dock with a large a portion of the sailors. A loud crash followed by the screams of several surprised marines sounded as a cannonball smashed right into the beginning of the main dock where the rease of Umber and Winge's forces were still running on their way to the side dock. The force of the crash shook and separated the main dock in its entirety, there were only three ships that Butterfields forces could board now.

'Make that two…' Butterfield thought to himself as a cannonball tore through the hull of one of the scouting ships.

"Captain Butterfield sir!" Came a familiar voice slightly to the left, Lieutenant Neehanny was floating on a small square section of the destroyed docks only a yard or two away. The Lieutenant had been running up the docks away from the main force when the cannonball hit and separated the chunk of docks that he was standing on. "Hold on let me pivot to you!" Neehanny called out as he delicately lifted his right leg and pressed the ball of his foot onto his raft-like portion of dock. "Pivot power!" He said with a slightly sassy twist of his ankle that caused his whole raft to twist with him, but other than that he remained completely stationary in relation to Butterfield.

"Are you done? Your powers obviously can't move the water." The Captain pointed out with a disappointed sigh. "Just jump over here, we will fish you out if you fall in!" Butterfield called out over the sound of Majje's ship releasing its first volley of cannon fire. Neehanny took this moment to leap the gap as ungracefully as he possibly could with his arms flailing in front of him. He landed just a foot short and splashed into the ocean, unable to swim because of his devil fruit powers. Thankfully, one of his arms was still being flailed about above his head and grabbed by the marines to haul him onto the main dock. "How long could a poop possibly take?" Butterfield began as Neehanny gasped for air. "And why aren't you armed?"

Neehanny reached up and tried to fix his wet hair which now looked more like a ball than a replica of his face only for it to all fall down over his face, a curly mess. "It was quite the poop, I lost my pistol in the stall." The Lieutenant explained, careful not to mention his brief kidnapping. "By the way, if Umber and Winge are commanding the large vessel and Majje has the smaller one, who is on that scout ship?" Neehanny pointed out the remaining scout ship that was seemingly sailing off completely unmanned towards the empty branch dock that bordered the now destroyed left arm of the fortress.

Butterfield spun around and cursed at the sight before another cannonball crashed in the water between the scouting ship and the dock, causing Butterfield and several other marines to fall onto their backs from the ensuing waves. "Who cares, we must board the only remaining ship here and back Majje and Winge's ships up!" Butterfield ordered his men as he pointed to the _Moon Goddess_.

**Back at the entrance to the docks…**

"OOOOOMEEEEEEEEEEGAAAAAAAAA FIST!" Came a scream and a crash as a final layer of wall was pointlessly punched through by the massive fishman.

"Dats quite da path o' destruction we leff, big mon." The handless chef pointed out as the duo had literally punched through every wall between the supply room to the docks. Jerry currently had several crystal boxes grafted onto his body where the supplies were undoubtedly being kept.

"Oh snap, things are getting crazy out here!" Bert pointed out as a cannonball fired from Sepia's troops smashed into one of the enemy ships, causing some heavy damage. Not even a moment later, another cannon ball, this time fired by the opposing ships crashed into the standard-sized warship that Umber and Winge had just got moving. Thankfully, a single cannon ball was not able to bring a ship that size down on its own and the ship began to move into more maneuverable waters for a counterattack.

The view of the battle at sea was soon obscured by a thin shroud of darkness, the sky had cast shadows upon the docking bay. "Ey' big mon! Coo Yah!" Jerry pointed at the sky "We haffi go tu ya boat if we wanna scape dis tourmentin'." The chef announced with a grave tone to warn of the oncoming storm. As if to highlight this statement a lightning bolt shot down from the sky as the rain began to come down upon the docks, lighting up the bay.

"MOOOOOON GOOOODDEEEEEEESSSSSSS!" Bert screamed in an enthusiastic dismay when the bolt of lightning illuminated the shipwright's creation to reveal it moving away from the docks. "SORRY JERRY, I GOT TO GOCATCH MY SHIP!" The fishman yelled as he dove into the stormy sea.

Jerry had no words to respond to Bert's departure as he scanned the bay for a new way off the island. The chef wasn't going to simply allow such an opportunity to escape him, he simply straightened is chef hat with the most serious of expressions upon his face and began to sprint along the edge of Bert and towards his newfound goal.

"Must be the storm we drifted into this morning." A certain blond-haired outlaw pointed out while the tormenting rain poured down upon him. Cannon fire lit up the dark sky as a barrage of iron artillery smashed into one of the two remaining ships and sent it on a voyage to the seafloor. Another lightning bolt revealed the _Moon Goddess's _location to the docking bay's two newcomers. "Dammit." Brizan muttered under his breath, their only ride out of the base had been taken. "At least I got my pistol back…" he reasoned to himself as he did often when no one was looking. He quickly rubbed his hand again the handle of his pistol as if he were checking to see if it were still there and then reached to the opposite side where a brand new cutlass of fine quality was suspended by his sash.

"Quit whinin' blondie!" Orrahn jeered at his companion while he ran towards the central dock, whose two main pieces had mostly drifted back together. "Let's just steal it back!" The thief said with a grin shortly before shoving the end of his grappling hook on one end of the dock and hopping over to the separated end to make a quick fix by tying it together.

Brizan let out a sigh and followed suit, he always felt uncomfortable doing stuff like this since a misstep meant possible death to a devil fruit user. As Brizan leapt onto the next part of the dock, another lightning bolt lit up the horizon to reveal only a single remaining ship that the _Moon Goddess _was now turning to shoot. Brizan landed with a thud and immediately lost his footing, causing him to fall forward onto the dock and grip onto it for dear life.

"Nice one blondie!" Orrahn taunted over the rumbling of thunder overhead, obviously not taking the situation very seriously. Brizan simply ignored the jeers since he was used to them, pushed himself back onto his feet and began moving again towards the end of the dock which was slowly drifting towards shore and away from their ship.

The sound of the enemy ship releasing a final volley of cannon fire filled the air followed by a cracking sound both in front and behind Brizan that filled his entire body with a strong sense of dread. "Shit!" he yelled as the piece of dock that he was standing on broke free and sent him off balance once more. This time, however the outlaw could not manage to grab a hold on anything felt himself get weak as his legs dipped into the ocean.

A hand suddenly slapped around Brizan's outstretched wrist followed by a toothy grin. "I gotchya blondie, but you are going to have to help me get ya up." The thief said cheerfully, he had managed to jump onto his partner's piece of dock just in time to save him. Brizan complied with Orrahn's request and weakly helped the kid pull him out of the water, his strength returning as he became less and less submerged.

"T-thanks..." The outlaw panted wearily, his face pressed up against the wet wood that was more of a raft than a dock at this point. Orrahn had no time for a witty remark now though for the final ship had been dealt with and now the _Moon Goddess's _focus was on them.

Brizan heard something that sounded like butterflied trying to yell over the storm but could not make out what he could possibly be saying. As if in response to this, a small pale-blue object smacked right into Orrahn's face. "What is it?" Brizan asked the thief who was now holding the object in his hand.

"A baby den den!" Orrahn cheered while waving the snail with a perfectly curled pink mustache about in the air. "Butterface wants to be friends!"

"Doubtful…" moaned the outlaw, still laying with his face on the wood that formerly formed the main dock. "Hand it to me" sounded a muffled voice that was better demonstrated by his outstretched hand.

The snail began to speak almost as soon as Brizan brought it down to his level. "I apologize for the informality Soso Brizan." Butterfield began in a very official tone that caused Brizan to immediately doubt the legitimacy of this so called 'apology'. "I had always hoped to send you off in a much more glorious fashion."

"Oh sweet! So you are giving us our ship back and sending us off in this storm as opposed to a nicer day? Thanks Butterfield!" Brizan replied in such a deeply sarcastic tone that Brizan could already feel the annoyance of the oncoming response. The outlaw simultaneously pushed himself into a sitting position as his face was begin to hurt after pressing against the hard wood for so long.

"Sadly, that is not the case, my old friend." Butterfield seethed through his teeth with the den den mushi mimicking his expressions. The _Moon Goddess _now loomed over the piece of dock that the two criminals floated on the cannons on that side were now all pointed towards them.

"Wait!" Brizan suddenly shouted.

"Oh, do you have last words or something?" The captain asked even though he obviously did not seem to care too much.

"No," the outlaw responded "but if you fire now, you will kill this innocent den den mushi! Not even Hexxon did that!" Brizan said with a half-serious tone in his voice. "Do you really think you could live with yourself being a den den mushi killer?"

"Snail slayer! Snail slayer!" Orrahn sung gleefully in the background like a parrot on crack.

There was a moment of silence and then a simple, softly spoken answer "sacrifices must be made."

Brizan took a deep breath, stood up, and grabbed his mischievous companion by the collar before launching him into the ocean. "I am the only one who can't swim. No point in letting him get shot too." Brizan justified his actions as he saw a little green head bob over the waves to his left. Another flash of lightning revealed something interesting on that dock. There was a tiny sailboat battling the waves of the storm all by itself and to make matters even more surprising, Jerry was chasing that boat in a full on sprint from the left dock.

"FIRE!" came a droned out yell that undoubtedly signaled the end of Brizan's days. The thundering sound of cannon fire erupted through the air, there was nowhere to run. Brizan waited apprehensively for the impact, but it never came for a wall of water emerged from right in front of the raft immediately following the blasts. A sound resembling the cracking of bones and a cannonball hitting something hard resonated through the air while several more cannonballs splashed into the ocean.

"THAT WAS CLOSE!" Came a pained, but ever-enthusiastic voice as the wall of water literally reached out and grabbed Brizan before diving back into the ocean.

Jerry's bare feet made a rhythmic thumping sound that provided a bass to the much quicker pattering of the rain. The chef looked ahead, if it wasn't for the weather, the boat he was chasing would be long gone, but now it was only just nearing the end of the docks. A bolt of lightning illuminated the remaining distance for the handless chef. "Kiss me neck… if me don' make eet now." Jerry panted, his rather large form now nearing the end of the dock, but the boat was now leaving. There was only a few steps left, lightning flashed, thunder roared and then Jerry leapt with all his might.

Butterfield twirled his mustache with a very neutral expression upon his face. "What's wrong sir?" One of the marines aboard the _Moon Goddess_ inquired. "I figured you would be happier with that criminal out of the way for good."

"It didn't hit." Amaranth Majje pitched in, her eyes keener than most. "Something blocked the cannonballs at the last moment."

"There!" Butterfield spoke at last pointing to the tiny ship that was moving on its own. "I just saw 'No Hands' Jump aboard, destroy that vessel!"

An eruption of water beside Jerry signaled the arrival of his three new found companions. A badly bleeding Bert struggled on board and rocked the entire ship with his massive size giving Orrahn an opportunity to jump off Bert's shoulders with an energetic grin "Thanks Whaley!"

"NO PROB-" Bert began to say before letting out a painful groan. "Nice thinking on taking this ship." The fishman's back was distorted from the impact of two cannonballs; if he was not so well trained he would probably have been dead.

Brizan and Orrahn rolled off the fishman's back and began to cough for air. "Th-thanks Bert." The devil-fruit-using Brizan said weakly while the strength returned to his muscles. "By the way, Jerry, what is the dal with this ship, was there anyone on it?"

"Nada dat I seen." Jerry began before something caught his eye. "Dem gunna shot at us!" Jerry warned the group. The _Moon Goddess _had begun to turn so that it could line up a shot.

Brizan got back up to his feet and began to assess the situation. "We can't rely on luck, Jerry can you reinforce the side of this ship since its small?"

"Onnit!" Jerry replied in his odd accent while he hurried to the starboard side of the ship that faced Butterfield and placed the nubs of his wrist on the edge, causing it to slowly crystalize. "Diss won' hold much doh."

Brizan moved to the boat's helm and turned to Orrahn. "Bring the sails up, we won't need them." The outlaw ordered to his mischievieous companion who was oddly complient to the request and immediately did as he was told.

Next, Brizan sighed and turned to Bert. He really did not want to ask this of the fishman who had just sacrificed so much for them.

"It's alright, I'll push the ship caps!" Bert said with an enthusiasm that was obviously intended to cover up his pain. The fishman then gave a huge grin and two thumbs up before jumping in the water with aloud splash that rocked the whole ship.

There was a chorus of loud blasts as Captain Butterfield gave the signal for the _Moon Goddess _to fire. Of the four cannons fired, two splashed harmlessly into the ocean. The other two, however reached their intended target and smashed into the side of the small scouting boat. Jerry's reinforcements made the boat lopsided for a small amount of time, but if they were not there, they would have sunk for sure. The sound of the crystal armor cracking filled the group's ears as it shattered from the force of two impacts. The side of the ship, however, remained entire intact save a tiny bit of splintering.

Meanwhile, underwater, Bert had positioned himself behind the ship as an off target cannonball sunk beside him. The huge fishman was still bleeding rather badly and had probably broken several ribs. "Oh boy, this is not going to be fun!" He said with more enthusiasm as he started to push the ship. Pain shot through his entire body, he was not going to be able to do this for long. The shipwright needed some help if they were going to get this boat out of Butterfield's range. "Hey caps!" Bert called out in pain when he broke the surface; the rain had died down slightly so his words were easier to make out. "Do you think you could help me out? I need a wave!"

Brizan looked around and scratched his chin. He figured that he would have to help Bert due to his injuries but was lost on how he would aid the fishman. That was when the outlaw spotted the crumbling structure that was once under Lieutenant Sepia's command. A smile came to Brizan's face "I got this, just get back under water and get ready!" he responded at last, his eyes darting around deck for a cannon. "Hey, Orrahn and Jerry! Move that cannon to the port side and aim it at the base of that pillar over there!"

Back underwater, Bert had already moved into position and had both of his arms spread out like he was about to surprise someone with a great big hug. Sadly, this was not hug time; it was giant monster wave time. Due to the shipwright being under water, he was unable to hear the cannon fire. He could, however, Hear the massive crumbling tumble into the ocean right behind him. Bert was not expecting such a quick response and did not even have time to scream omega something to name his move. The fishman simply kicked his feet and clapped his hands together with all the force he could muster as he raced the now huge wave to the scouting boat.

Back above water, the entire boat shook in a manner that made it feel like it was going to capsize. "Grabbon ta sumtin!" The man with no hands shouted with an irony that he did not even notice as he used his fruit powers to latch onto the ship. Within seconds the boat was riding a massive wave, something that would surely end in disaster with the boat so close to shore, but thanks to Bert pushing it along, the boat did not veer from its course in the slightest.

A chorus of cannons being fired from the _Moon Goddess_ only to fall just short and fall helplessly in the water. "That should do it… caps!" A greatly weakened Bert gave Brizan a huge thumbs up once he got back on board the ship.

"That was awesome Bert!" Brizan said with unusual excitement as he turned the wheel to the port side so that they could cut around the crumbling portion of the base and be out of the line of fire. He definitely did not expect toget out of that predicament alive. In fact, Brizan being the eternal pessimist that he was, had given up on life no less than eight times since they arrived on Smokey Top Island. Brizan's rare compliment fell bounced off Bert unheard for he had just fallen flat on his face, unconscious.

"Whaley's dead! Whaley's dead!" Orrahn cried in dismay after bringing the sails back out to catch the gust of wind that just began to blow their way.

"Just get down here and bandage him up so that he can hold off while we find a doctor." Brizan ordered, his eyes still on the horizon where a few ships were still battling it out at a different front, he was sure that Smokey Top's town would be the same way. "Hey Jerry, do you have a local map and some navigation equipment? I am pretty sure that the map Unagi showed me depicted Smooreshelm near us." Brizan inquired to the chef who had just begun to open the many crystal boxes of supplies that he had acquired from the base.

"I gots ya" Jerry said withasmile that quickly vansished and was replaced with a much more alert expression. "Yous smell da'at?"

"Brizan sniffed the air, it smelled very sweet. "It smells like pancakes and maple syrup." Brizan pointed out suspiciously. The smell was coming from the door where a small kitchen was undoubtedly located.

"Kekekekekekeke" a unique laugh sounded as the door creaked open to reveal Unagi. "I did not expect to have companions with me." The young man said with the most sincere insincere smile that he could possibly conjure. The man continued to walk while he popped a piece of a pancake into his mouth. "I have got to thank you for getting this ship out of the mess, I was busy organizing all the pancakes I got. I guess that makes us ev-"

Unagi had begun to say even but did not have a chance to finish before Brizan coldly kicked him in the chest and sent him tumbling into the sea below, pancake and all. "Yea I will takethe pancakes and then call it even. That'll be my breakfast for weeks!" Brizan was happy with the way things turned out, he did not want to go through that breakfast fiasco again and certainly did not want to that overly optimistic freak that he had spoken to on the den den mushi to enter his life ever again. The outlaw placed his hands back on the wheel and looked at the map that Jerry had given him. There was not a lot of room for mistake in navigation this time, if Bert did not make it to a doctor in a few hours' time, he would die for sure.

**Back at the Docking Bay…**

"Should we pursue them, sir?" A voice asked over Butterfield's den den mushi.

The captain simply twirled his mustache for a moment as he thought. "No, no Umber, there are much more important matters to attend to at the moment." Butterfield reasoned as he grabbed his bigger, command den den mushi receiver. "Attention all personnel, reports have just come in that the enemy is on full retreat. Please rendezvous at the town to plan a counter attack, Butterfield out!"

End of Chapter 3...

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><p>An: Hey everyone, sorry I have been gone for so long. I have been extremely busy and have gone through many painful and potentially fatal ordeals(like every day) that I could tell you about but its none of your damn business. You know what is your damn business? Reviewing. Kablam, that's all I really have to say. Well, actually I was going to tell you guys to read RT's fic Jolly Rogers and Seagulls of Justice, but she was unavailable the three days I gave her to proofread my chapter with absolutely no warning from my side. So... forget her.

Also Whale will be popping out a chapter any day now that he has been almost done with since July, but don't worry it will be as fresh and crispy as you guys can imagine.

What do you want me apologize for being so mean and taking so long? Pfft, no way... DAHAHAHAHAHA! Also Sorus is making his comeback film noir style, so be ready to imagine some tight camera angles, black & white cinematography and quick talking in New York/Boston accents!

That'll come out whenever... peace out!


	32. Oregano Chapter 4 Part 1

Disclaimer: We do not own One Piece in any way.

Oregano and the Secrets of Sycamore Isle! Part One

By: peanutbutterlung (Whale)

On Board the Cherry Maria

"This is the biggest piece of trash I have ever heard! Shit son give me that damn paper!" Bo shouted in a rage filled display of hatred and disbelief at the claim that he, a heavy weight boxing champion had been kidnapped of all things. His massive hand took hold of the paper Oregano held in his hand and ripped it from his grasp.

"Ayee Bo! I'm sure it will be corrected soon or something man. Maybe this paper is just a silly tabloid issue." Oregano replied hesitantly to the seething boxer before him.

Tompkins was still perched on top of Oregano's head as he bent his head back in an alarmed fashion at the heated issue before him.

Polen on the other hand who just seconds earlier was happily trotting around Bo and Oregano, enjoying the lovely day, had now bolted down the steps to retreat downstairs in fear. Bo's immense blood-lust was radiating out through the air and both Polen and Tompkins, with their animal instincts picked up on this emotion quick and knew the situation before them was the real deal.

"Damn right they better correct it!" Bo finally spoke clearly after muttering many lines of unrecognizable words under his breath which Oregano could only imagine to be the most terribly offensive curses known to mankind. "I mean shit, the next marine I see is gonna get it for this, no lie." He continued as he threw the newspaper in disgust back at Oregano. The papers scattered at the pirate's feet and were whisked into the air by a sudden breeze.

Oregano smiled as he watched the paper flutter into the distance. "Yeah get outa here ya tabloid crud!" he added – Trying his best to show Bo that he was backing him up all the way even though he did want to read more of that newspaper. He knew the paper was in fact the real deal so he was hoping for an update on the mysterious Candy Cloud from before. He scratched his head and knew he would just have to look at the paper tomorrow to get filled in on what he was missing.

It was about that time however when a sudden thump was heard hitting against the side of Cherry Maria. Oregano's eyes just about popped out of his head in surprise as he stared over towards the side of the boat that the noise came from.

"Hold that thought Bo! One of Tompkins' cousins might have just hit the side of our boat - Maybe it's a trait in his family!" Oregano jokingly claimed as he began to hobble over to the side of the ship.

Tompkins began to peck at Oregano's head for the teasing he had just dished out about him and his family but was quickly frozen in awe just like Oregano and Bo alike when a man came leaping onto the deck of the Cherry Maria from a row boat floating in the calm West Blue water below.

"My, my, my… Those are some pretty big words Mr. Stockston." The new man spoke sleepily towards Bo. "Although I do suppose your strength is known throughout many parts of the world so such claims are reasonably backed up."

The man before them was adorned with the renowned jacket of the marines draped across his shoulders! Underneath he wore a light-salmon colored double-breasted suit, a teal dress shirt underneath that, and a faint colored blue tie.

For his appearance the man looked to be in his early thirties. He had short curly navy hair on his head that exposed a great deal of his forehead due to an obvious receding hairline. He was clean-shaven besides a split mustache that slouched downwards at an angle around his mouth. This prominent slouching was the result of an incredible amount of wrinkles and crevices that encircled the man's mouth which were reminiscent of parenthesis following one after the other. The man's eyes were incredibly puffy and his entire face looked dead tired as well. Especially as he then proceeded to yawn and blink slowly as he looked over Oregano, Tompkins and Bo.

"Wow using this kid for bait is working faster than expected! And hot shit by your jacket you must be pretty important as well." Bo's excitement and anger alike were both growing ever faster by the second as he recalled what was said about him in the paper. "You marines like making jokes?!"

Tompkins squawked in unison with Bo's shouting, showing his disbelief at the scene as well! It was mainly just to fit in though. He played it off incredibly well because all present assumed he was on point due to his precisely timed squawks.

Oregano began to laugh at the scene before him however once he had a moment to soak it all in as he then chuckled. "What in the world are you doing here on my ship?"

There was no time for the marine to answer though. Bo had already bolted in on him at an incredible pace leading him into suddenly taking a clobbering swing at the man's head.

Right as Bo's fist had appeared to connect with the Marine's face the very man he was sure he had punched had vanished from sight! Bo seemed to stumble forward due to the momentum he had in his punch that carried him past where he originally anticipated ending.

The marine had quickly evaded the attack and was currently hiding at a diagonal viewpoint to Bo, thus exposing his blind spot. Bo had followed his movements the whole time however as he smirked a violence craving grin. "Best open ya damn eyes droopy. Who the hell do you think you're messing with?"

It was in that instant that a blow could be felt by the marine in his stomach. Bo had landed a feint attack under the cover of a heavily over the top jab.

The marine gagged as he leaned over instinctively trying his best to catch his breath. After a few huffs and puffs the marine peaked one eye open slightly and muttered. "What a bother, I haven't even had my fifth nap of the day."

Bo sneered as he jumped backwards and realigned himself with his opponent. He began hoping on his toes for added movement and agility. "Like I give a shit if you miss one of your naps you wrinkled old prune of a geezer!" He yelled as tore towards the marine for another successful punch.

The marine quickly vanished before Bo was anywhere close to him this time causing the boxer to skid to a sudden stop like earlier.

Oregano, Tompkins and Bo all began to twist and turn their heads to try and find the marine that had somehow managed to disappear completely. It wasn't long before they noticed he was propped up lazily behind them leaning against the wall that contained the door which led to the lower level of the ship.A terrified Polen could be seen cowering on the ground between his legs. The koala had snuck back up to the deck upon hearing all the commotion but now was stuck with his back up against the wall as tight as he could press it. The marine in his sleepy state must not have noticed the fluffy koala and decided to position himself perfectly above him.

Oregano's mouth quickly made a dramatic 'O' shape when he noticed his buddy trapped in such a sticky situation. Before he or Polen, or anyone for that matter had time to react though the marine began to mumble, still oblivious to the koala beneath him.

"All this fighting and jostling is much too tiresome, is this any way to treat a guest on your ship?" The marine mumbled softly as he wiped a trickle of blood from his chin. His saggy eyelids bobbed with the words he spoke.

Bo gritted his teeth in disgust upon hearing this comment. "What do you expect me to do ya damn fool?! You stupid marines put I was kidnapped in the paper! Are ya trying to ruin my reputation?" The boxer roared as his muscles began to bulge.

The marine seemed to have finally lost the battle with his tired eyelids and was simply standing still before them all with his eyes closed as he listened to the boxer's roar of complaints.

Oregano quickly took advantage of the eye closing that the marine was currently on about and gave Polen a barrage of hand signs that showed him that now would be his time to escape. After a few seconds went by of Oregano acting out ridiculous scenarios in his head and expressing them through the use of hand signs, Polen finally got the picture. He quickly scurried out from beneath the would-be snoozing marine and hurried up into the crow's nest above for safety.

The marine then propped one eye open ever so slightly as he began to look at Oregano who luckily had just finished doing his menagerie of secret hand signs so his 'Cool Points' were still untarnished.

"So this 'Triple Six' has you controlled with fear has he? Making you claim you left on your own free will when in fact you are his prisoner here on this ship – Don't fret however for I am here…" The marine suddenly paused mid-sentence. This showing of complete relaxation enraged Bo even more and caused Oregano and Tompkins to raise their eyebrows in surprise.

Bo had to make contact again with this marine now to teach him a lesson! Right as he took one step to begin his charge however the marine quickly yelled out. "Aye Slurry I changed my mind I'm too tired for this mess."

"Roger that Nightbright san!" A female voice responded from the far side of the boat.

Oregano whipped around in surprise pivoting on his crutch so he wouldn't fall over upon hearing yet another new voice on his ship but what he saw next surprised him even more.

A clicking noise was made from where the girl sat on the side of the Cherry Maria which caused Oregano to instantly react. In one fluid motion he reached down past his neon green lion shirt and into his pants to grab his pistol. Time was crucial and as he drew the pistol up he fired immediately into the seemingly empty space before him.

A sudden clang was heard mere seconds after Oregano fired his shot and a bullet and a dart fell from their flights and bounced on the deck below resulting in a series of clinks and clanks that echoed through the near silent air that had fallen on the ship after gunfire was made.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa! Let's get a grip on this situation! Now I might run a pretty lax ship here and all, but shooting darts at people just isn't anything I'm gonna let happen or tolerate. That is where I draw the line - What else can I say?" Oregano stated which ended with him laughing at how serious he accidentally sounded.

Tompkins meanwhile flapped down from Oregano's head to the scene of the bullet and dart collision on the deck and picked up the dart with his beak. It was shiny due to a bronze coating and he decided it needed to be his because of this. He then coasted back up to his perch on Oregano's head and dropped the dart into the hood of Oregano's windbreaker for safe keeping.

All eyes were on Oregano who was still looking over at the marine's accomplice who had been trying to pull a sneakeroo and a half on everyone with her dart-gun. High eyebrows were the norm on all those present at this scene as they waited for anyone to react next. It was an incredibly odd standoff, but it still managed to stall the likes of everyone present.

"How did he…?" The female marine finally stuttered as she stared at the wacky pirate before her with a seagull on his head. Could this actually be 'Triple Six' Oregano? The demon that wrecked total chaos and fear on Oion!

Oregano began to smile at the female marine who was still motionlessly sitting on the edge of the ship. She wore the traditional marine uniform and with it wore a light blue scarf around her neck and a marine cap pulled down tight on her head. The bill of the cap was bent to its max resulting in an upside down 'V'.

Underneath her cap she had long shoulder length bluish-teal hair that she wore in long wavy strands. Her face was young and she seemed to be in her late teens to early twenties. Her skin was pale and a few freckles dotted underneath her dark brown eyes.

After waiting a few seconds Oregano finally blurted towards her.

"Alright awesome glad you aren't shooting anymore darts. Thanks for listening!" He commented softly, mixing up her reaction of disbelief with that of compliance to the rules he had laid down.

The girls face began to turn bright red at this ridiculous claim of a comment. "Ohhh yeah, like I would listen to you pirate!" She replied with bitterness as she swung her legs all the way over the side of the ship she had been sitting on. When her legs hit the ground she immediately reached to her side and drew a sword. Now in one hand she sported her dart-gun and in the other a blade.

"Now then let's go 'Triple Six'!" She shouted as she blitzed Oregano, her dart gun aiming forward and her sword rearing back beside her ready to slash in case of a missed shot.

"Ayee wait! Really?" Oregano hollered as he watched the marine running towards him. He didn't want to shoot her by any means so he figured he could shoot the weapons out of her hands perhaps.

Just as he was about to try this plan out and take aim, the female marine's legs were sent straight into the air and her momentum carried her forward resulting in her hitting the ground hard and sliding past Oregano completely.

"Yikes and I thought I was clumsy!" Oregano muttered as he turned to the girl who was now sprawled out on the deck behind him.

"I'm not clumsy! That was your cheap trick that made me fall!" The girl blurted as she pointed to the remains of some slick substance on the deck she had slipped on that was resting on the bottom of her boot. From the looks of it Oregano could tell right off the bat that it was… Eucalyptus Sushi!

A sudden knocking was then heard from above coming from the Crow's Nest of the ship and a certain koala was seen pushing up his 'Cool Shades'. He knew it was his moment to shine and he wanted to look as slick as could be so he crossed his arms and looked out into the distant sea. He knew he had to be the most fly koala in the whole world.

"Poleeeeeeeeen! I was panicking down here and then boom you helped me out my man! Thanks for the quick save!" Oregano praised his koala with a shout and a series of woos and other celebratory noises. Tompkins began to join in the praise as well and started to squawk and flap his wings together to imitate clapping. Once again the seagull was simply trying to fit in more than anything and his impeccable timing once again proved to everyone that he still had what it took.

Even with all this praise Polen just kept looking into the distance however. His eye's hidden by the dark shade of his everlasting 'Cool Shades'. With all the praise he was receiving he knew he would be even cooler if he acted like it was no big deal. So he even began to do a routine of him stretching and pretending to check the time on his imaginary watch.

"Hey! I'm still here you know!" The female marine eventually called out, annoyed that Oregano was busy hooting and hollering at a koala than worrying about her. During her fall her blade had slid away from her and she was unaware of its current location but she still had in her grasp the dart-gun.

"Come now Slurry! Forget about it, my drowsiness… has reached the point of … us needing to go." The original marine suddenly called out with fatigue resting on every word. He and Bo had been going back and forth as Oregano and Slurry were having a face off of their own.

"But, but Nightbright san!" Slurry uttered in dismay.

"Aw there, there!" Nightbright yawned as he replied. "My, my, my you know if I weren't so tired I would gladly bring him in… But we still have to go get ready for… our assignment. Someone else will surely take care of this terribly evil rookie here and bring the kidnapped Bo to safety."

"You're always tired Nightbright san! How can you…?" Slurry shouted when suddenly Bo Stockston appeared next to Nightbright and jabbed at him in a flash.

"I haven't been kidnapped you piece of dog shit! And quit your yappin' while we are in the middle of a damn fight!" Bo exclaimed as a flurry of punches began to blur in front of Nightbright's torso.

Bo counted only three of his twenty punches hitting the marine however as the man vanished from sight once more after the barrage of punches It was obvious that his opponent was starting to wake up a little more as the fight progressed.

Nightbright coughed up a little blood as his eyes opened a tad bit wider than before. "I am not in any mood to wake up right now… Since you are a hostage on this ship I will forgive you though, keep in mind however that I am certainly a grumpy person to keep awake too long."

"Better shut that damn mouth of yours you sleepy eyed fool! Fight me!" Bo demanded. Frustrated at what the marine had said. He bounced back on his toes recovering from the many evaded punches that he threw and sprang forward again towards Nightbright.

Nightbright's eyes widened from their previous squinty state suddenly as Bo darted at him with a series or feints and ducks. It was evident that the angrier Bo became the stronger and faster he was becoming.

A series of furious hooks jabs and crosses filled the space around Nightbright's head as Bo's attempts at striking his now even more evasive adversary became closer and closer with every missed attempt. The force of the wind was starting to be felt by Nightbright as his curly blue hair would flutter from the sheer speed of Bo's fist passing his body.

Nightbright continued backing up avoiding the series of close misses one after the other. Waking up more and more with every dodge he made. His body was in a constant state of movement and from practically being asleep to now getting jarred about like this his temper was growing.

"You've pushed me just about out of my slumber Mr. Stockston. A feat quite impressive, but not at all appreciated by… yours truly, hostage or not I'm afraid I can't forgive you." Nightbright yawned. Apparently his slumber like state wasn't as gone as one would think.

Bo simply grinned a dastardly grin as he uttered. "Not only that but I gotcha back to the ropes bitch!"

Nightbright's head turned slightly to see behind him, and in doing so noticed Bo had indeed pushed him to the side of the ship.

An expression of surprise on Nightbright's face quickly contorted back to the regular slouchy fatigued expression in a matter of seconds as Nightbright uttered. "I'll have to use it now… If I wait any longer I'll be grumpy for the rest of the day because I'll miss my nap."

Bo ignored the marine's self-murmurings as he moved in for the jab opening he had set himself up for. As he swooped in for the attack however he noticed Nightbright suddenly make a sliding motion with his foot. It wasn't long after that, that Bo tripped and fell with a slam into the side of the ship.

As Bo lay on the ground dumbfounded from how he fell Nightbright quickly yet sleepily stammered away and motioned for Slurry who was at the time currently yelling at Oregano for not taking things seriously. With the claims about how Oregano was an evil-filled maniac, she could only guess he was toying with her for the sake of extreme humiliation.

Bo quickly shook his head as he inspected the area around him. "What the hell just happened?" he thought until he suddenly noticed an irregular hole now present in the deck where he had tripped. His foot had gotten caught in it without him knowing it was there. "How in the..?" he muttered while from across the ship he heard.

"Aye come on now Slurry things are getting a little too loud for me here. We will spread word of this ships location when we reach Sycamore Isle and a fleet will certainly come for the kid's head."

Slurry pouted and stomped her foot in frustration as she quickly ran over to where Nightbright was standing. She deeply wished that her superior didn't sleep so much so that they could complete more of their jobs and not just show up and leave prematurely all the time.

The two marines were right above where they had anchored their row boat below the Cherry Maria and with one final glare towards Oregano, Slurry blushed slightly and quickly whipped her head away and leaped off the ship landing in their boat with grace.

Now Nightbright was all that remained as he turned to Oregano who now had finally convinced Polen to snap out of his 'Too Cool' act that he was preforming and come down from the Crow's Nest and sit on his shoulder. Tompkins and Polen were now both squirming around on him which easily threw him off balance due to his broken leg. As he wobbled about Nightbright began to speak.

"'Triple Six' don't think your heinous crimes will go unnoticed… I am a rare exception, and our running into here today was pure chance… If I weren't so sleepy, and didn't have an important mission to attend to on Sycamore Isle you would be heading to prison without a doubt."

Oregano began to pout upon hearing such words from the marine. "I'm sure we could work things out man. I have a ton of things planned like adventures and expeditions, and going to jail just won't fit."

Nightbright's woozy eyes began to give off a vibe of agitation as he heard the outrageous claim of Oregano, it was easy to see that he was becoming grumpy. "Nothing will be worked out until justice is brought upon you vile pirate…" Nightbright then glanced over to where Bo had been laying before and when his drowsy eyes revealed the space to now be vacant now he knew he had to react fast.

With a whirling series of swipes of his hands Nightbright began to motion around his body in a waving like fashion. As his hands waved through the air a pink aura surrounded them and as they circled through the air the visibility around him began to become remarkably clearer.

Oregano, Polen and Tompkins all tilted their heads in unison as they watched the marine preform these odd movements which in turn altered the visibility around him. It wasn't long before Tompkins quickly turned his head suddenly to the right and in mere seconds a previously undetected Bo emerged into the sight of the three terribly confused onlookers.

The hulk of a boxer was outstretching his arm for a mean cross towards the sleepy marine. As Bo's massive fist continued towards Nightbright a clean shot looked evident. It wasn't until Nightbright casually yawned and gave off a tired smile that things got strange.

As Bo's fist entered the clear area of air that Nightbright seemed to create with his faintly glowing pink hands, his overall momentum began to increase without warning causing the boxer to stumble past his desired target. As his fist left the clearer section of air the rest of his body quickly followed suit increasing his total speed by a drastic amount until he practically flew past Nightbright completely and fell to the ground on the opposite end of the Cherry Maria.

This event took only a mere of couple of seconds to happen, so to Oregano and crew Bo simply overshot his target by a good 30 feet by means of sudden and spontaneous flight. A trick none of them were expecting to see, however they were still rather impressed by this remarkable feat.

"Wow what the heck?! How did you pull that off Bo?" Oregano questioned as he stared wide-eyed at his crew-mate at the end of the ship in complete confusion.

Bo meanwhile gritted his teeth as he rose up off the deck with his massive arms. With a hate filled grimace he growled. "So you still playin' tricks are ya?" He then spat to the side and looked over to Oregano. "You think I planned to do that kid? This fool is using some kind of magic."

Oregano's eyes began to widen and transform into stars upon hearing such precious information. "A real life magician are you kidding me Bo Stockston?!" Oregano whispered in disbelief.

It wasn't long before Tompkins followed suit and his very own seagull eyes transformed into stars as well. He was on a role today and once again everyone suspected that he in fact was hip and in on the scene.

Polen's eyes were stars as well but his 'Cool Shades' prevented the shining starlight from his eyes from escaping because unlike Tompkins trying to fit in all the time, he was always opposing the norm to get his cool points, so his dark as night 'Cool Shades' saved him here with out question.

It wasn't long after this whole situation that Slurry's voice could be heard from down in the rowboat beside the Cherry Maria. "Nightbright San! Hurry up and get down here! I already contacted the marines at Sycamore Isle and they had ships in the general area anyway! We can get out of here now and you won't have to miss your nap! Look out on the horizon!"

Nightbright happily demonstrated a smile filled with fatigue and relief alike as he murmured. 'Slurry you sly girl… If I didn't have you to think for me when I get so tired nothing would get done."

And with that Nightbright jumped backwards off the ship and landed with a thud in the rowboat below. "Mr. Stockston these marines will surely set you free!" He moaned loudly. It was obvious it was a last second effort to speak before sleep completely took over. A sudden roar of a noise then proceeded to exit the marine's mouth and nose as he began to snore.

"Get back here you damn lazy bastard! I'm just warming up!" Bo shouted with rage as he watched the rowboat being rowed away by Slurry as Nightbright slouched over in his state of slumber.

Oregano by then recovered from his star-eyed condition and had wobbled over to the side of the Cherry Maria beside where Bo was currently standing. "Hey I think I know where we should go next Bo!"

Bo looked down at Oregano beside him and popped his knuckles thoroughly. "Damn straight son."

"To Sycamore Isle!" The two then proceeded to say in unison.

"Hey no doubt man if this place has marine magicians going to it on secret missions it must be full of surprises and adventure!" Oregano laughed.

"Tsch that shits not what I'm interested in. I'm in it for whooping that marine's cheap trick using ass." Bo responded.

Oregano smiled as he rubbed Polen's fuzzy head on his shoulder. He could tell his pet was getting incredibly nervous because he was gripping his shoulder with incredible strength.

"But first it looks like we are gonna have some more company." Oregano added as he pointed to the two marine ships headed their way.

Polen's clench increased even more than it already was causing Oregano to shout. "Poleeeen cut it out you sucker!"

Meanwhile Back on Plisboro Cove

"My poor baby boy!" shrieked a horrified woman from inside the Zesty Ease restaurant. The lady was holding up this morning's newspaper in front of her face as she sat on a stool at the restaurants bar. Customers were at every table due to the famous spiced chai tea that was the brunch special at the restaurant today and they all darted their attention to the wailing woman.

"Missy, Missy! You're scarring the customers away – What on earth has gotten into you?!" A large beer bellied man shouted with concern from behind the bar counter as he approached the screaming woman.

"Look Chives! Damn it all look at what they have said about our poor son!" The woman roared with tears streaming down her face as she slammed the newspaper in front of the man behind the counter.

The two of them were none other than Oregano's parents and now they were both staring directly at the front page of the paper. 'Triple Six' Oregano and his hideous crimes flooded the page before them in text filled with slander and hate.

"Chives! He just left and now this! How can a mother take all this in? It's just like reading about the others all over again! Except my poor baby isn't like those delinquent cousins of his! Why does this run in your side of the family?! Oregano always gets mixed up in trouble!" Missy cried as countless costumers slowly began to creep out of the restaurant due to incredible amounts of uneasy vibes. Special spiced chai tea or not they were feeling heavy rushes of awkwardness just being in the same room as the couple.

"Come on now don't be like that, we both know our son and his rotten luck, I'm sure this is a misunderstanding and things resolve themselves soon enough." Chives spoke confidently to try and calm his wife the best he could.

"Burning down a city and kidnapping a pro boxer?! My baby has been framed! They have made my poor boy out to be a devil and he needs his momma to protect him from the harsh world!" Missy continued to cry, unaffected by her husband's attempt to comfort her.

"Now Missy we promised we would trust him to take care of himself. He isn't a little kid anymore dear." Chives spoke as he patted his beer belly loudly trying to demonstrate his words were to the point. He then turned his head in surprise as he replayed his wives words in his head. "He kidnapped a pro boxer?"

Chives picked up the paper to get a better look at the print and as he scanned the paper he couldn't believe what he saw. "Dill is going to have a cow when he sees this – Of all the people it's Bo Stockston!"

Now at the Plisboro Cove Security Department

"Bo Stockston!" Dill hollered at the top of his lungs. "You gotta be kidding me!" He screamed as he lept up from behind his desk as a fellow security guard told him the news.

"So not only do I get hit with the news that my kid brother is now a bounty head but he has also kidnapped my favorite boxer?!"

The fellow security guard nodded shyly not knowing whether he should leave the scene before him or try to comfort Dill.

After a few seconds passed in order to catch his breath, Dill proceeded to quickly pull the bill of his cap down over his eyes as he smirked and it was clear he had cooled down. "Oregano you goof ball of a brother, I know better than to think you actually burned down that city, but how the hell did you get Bo Stockston on your ship? I better get an autograph out of this! Especially after you putting me through all this stress."

Dill then picked up a bounty poster that was lying on his desk. Hot off the press was Oregano's very own bounty poster. 'Triple Six' Oregano wanted dead or alive for 36,000,000 beli it read. Above that showed a picture of Oregano with Polen on his shoulder inside the Delightful Commons lobby. A terrified Melvin could be seen in the background behind the grinning duo.

Dill put down the poster and shook his head after studying the picture of his brother. He then stopped for a moment looked into the air and muttered. "Looks like you're having quite the adventure out there Oregano… Polen stick in there buddy I'm sure things are tough for you dealing with his wackiness all the time. At least you apparently get to hang out with your boxing hero huh?"

It was about that time that the Head Chief's office door exploded into the main room where all the security guards were stationed at their respective tables and desks. His hate filled beady eyes immediately locked onto Dill. He had just received the newspaper and bounty poster from a secretary and was filled with rage. However what he was feeling more than anything was satisfaction. Gratifying emotions were steaming from his body due to his accurate prediction of how dangerous of a pirate Oregano was. He knew his effort in warning Oion would lead to him getting more recognition and respect in the future. It was a truly a shallow showing when looking at the situation as a whole.

"Officer Dill! Did you see what your kid brother..?!" Mutton finally screamed towards Dill but halted immediately once he saw Dill's following actions.

Dill calmly sat down at his seat, pulled the bill of his cap down over his face even further than he previously had it and kicked his legs up onto a nearby table.

"Yes sir chief Mutton I certainly did." He replied bluntly with a smile which halted the chief's plan of berating Dill with crude and insensitive comments completely.

Meanwhile Elsewhere in the West Blue on a Certain Island

"This island is such a fantastic find! I can't believe I have never been here before – I have been in the West Blue all my life and never have I been here! I can't get enough of it! It really has it all, and it is fresh for the taking with practically no marine presence in sight! No wonder it was an old hangout of Capone Bege! It's got all you could…"

"Shut up Andreli or it will be the last island you ever get to see you blabbering annoyance! Ya got that?" An irritated voice called out to the over talkative man rambling on and on about nothing of particular importance.

"Sheesh Landonn I don't think I was really hurting anyone… You didn't have to go that far." Andreli complained as he crossed his arms over his barrel shaped body.

The two continued to walk along a vacant dirt road with old western style houses bordering each side. They were both Rascal Pirate members under Captain Remey and were heading to a tavern the rest of their crew had already taken control of. A few would-be pirates and bandits alike tried to defend their varied territories here but none were able to match the force that Remey posed.

Andreli who had the sniping occurrence which almost resulted in him losing an ear or more with Oregano in the past was a rambling sentence stringing, barrel shaped man who wore a golden-brown poncho like robe that covered most of his body. For pants he wore faded black jeans and he sported red boots on his feet for shoes. On his back he had a retractable lance that he tied to himself across his chest with a simple rope.

Andreli's appearance, besides having the abnormal barrel shaped body consisted of him being around 8 feet tall and having a prominently rectangular head with bold features like his very large ears and nostrils. His skin was tan and he had dark blue eyes. As for his hair he wore a Jerry Curl hair style and his hair itself was pink. He also adorned a split thin mustache that rested delicately above his upper lip.

As for Landonn's appearance he was a slender and remarkably bony man of around 5 feet in height. He wore a simple navy blue sweatshirt with very tight cuffs around the wrists, waist and collar and for his pants he sported simple gray sweatpants. He wore black combat boots for shoes that he tucked into the bottom of his sweatpants making them very tight on his legs. Over his shoulder he draped a strap which held a small duffel bag on the end of it.

The overall boniness of Landonn's appearance results in dramatic shading in his face especially near his cheek bones which gave him a gothic like image. As for hair he wore his short blue-black hair greased to the front of his head resulting in a prominent widow's peak. His were light blue and he had a series of 6 piercings all along his left ear.

As these two continued to walk a good ways up the vacant street without talking Andreli couldn't help but feel the need to start up his habit of talking again before long. "So where is this tavern at again Landonn?"

Landonn's incredibly slim and bony face made veins easily noticeable when he became aggravated and that was normally a warning sign to most, but Andreli was a guy who always seemed to press his buttons so there was never much room for leeway.

"Damn it I've had enough of you!" Landonn exclaimed as he slung his duffel bag off his shoulder. "We don't need a weakling like you on the crew anyways!"

"Give me a break Landonn! You haven't even seen half of what I can do! To think you would make such a claim. I honestly can't believe…"

"You talk way too much!" Landonn screamed as he reached inside his duffel bag and started to blitz the barrel shaped Andreli, when suddenly a presence was noticed by both of them instantly as they both turned to see a man wearing a suit of all black leather step out of the shadow of a building he was walking beside.

He was a man of around 6 feet in height and he was covered from head to toe in a suit consisting of many straps and latches and even stitches. Even his face was covered by the leather suit, leaving all but his dark eyes covered. A wicked scarecrow like smile could be seen etched on the leather covering his face depicting a very unsettling image. The man also wore a tattered black trench-coat and a black cowboy hat on top of his head.

"Vice… Vice-Captain Scabs!" The two shuddered as they awaited a response from the concealed man before them.

"No time for games, we have to get to the tavern quickly, the Captain is ready to set sail." Scabs spoke bluntly to his two fellow members as he began to walk down the vacant street in front of them. The crew had just arrived here at this island a few hours ago so both Landonn and Andreli knew that something big must have happened to make the captain decide to leave so soon.

The three walked in complete silence for about ten minutes until Scabs finally exclaimed "We're here." If there was one thing could keep Andreli silent it was his Vice Captain's creepy aura, for even though he wanted to talk now, all he could muster was a simple nod of his head.

A sudden boom resulting in the shattering of glass and splintering of wood was suddenly heard as a once normal tavern had now been contorted upon itself. It was the tavern the Rascal Pirates had claimed earlier that day and now before them all it was destroyed and in a pile of rubble.

"Baiaiaia! So that Oregano thinks he is a big deal now does he?" A laughing Captain Remey suddenly shouted from next to the wrecked building. "First he lures the marines right on to our trail and the next day he is front page of the newspaper?! This rookie has got some nerve!" he continued to speak with a hint of intrigue. "I suppose the ball is in our court now men!" He bellowed believing that Oregano had actually done all these things on purpose.

Captain Remey was quite the rough looking fellow. He was around 7 feet tall in height and he was well fit with muscles. His skin was pale where it actually could be seen since most of his arms, legs,neck and chest were covered with tattoos. Cranes among many other types of birds made up the majority of his tats.

As for clothes he wore a shredded violet tank-top with the words 'Skid Grinders' written in jagged yellow letters across the front. His pants, much like his tank-top were ripped and tattered and were a rebellious shade of red. For shoes he wore a pair of blue and teal high-top sneakers, and these were worn without any socks which showed how much of a rebel he really was. The final accessory to his outfit was a white headband that had 8 squares patched on it to reflect his epithet 'Eight-Fold'.

For his hair he had massive 2 feet long liberty spikes pointing out from his head numbering 10 total. His face was covered with piercings in his lip, his nose, eyebrows and ears. He had bloodshot red eyes that clashed with his regularly hazel green eyes completely. He was truly the image he wanted to portray – A true blue rascal of a guy!

As the crazed look in his eyes slowly faded he finally noticed Scabs, Andreli and Landonn standing their distance before him. "Get to the ship. The others are already on board - We have plans!"

As the remaining Rascal Pirates nodded at their captain's demand a sudden outburst was heard from down the previously vacant dirt road.

"Word has it some punk ass pirate has invaded my turf! This town belongs to me, the great bandit Duster Featherbeard!" A deep voice echoed towards the group of Rascal Pirates before him.

"Captain shall I?" Scabs murmured as he motioned forward instinctively expecting Remey to give him the green light to attack this man, but today was an unusual day for The Rascal Captain. The information that he had read in the paper had truly fired him up.

"I'll handle things today Scabs!" Remey spoke with a hideously sinister grin as he stepped forward to meet the bandit challenging him for possession of the town. The bandit was a large man standing at around 16 feet tall. He was a very heavy set man who was very hairy as well. His trademark name 'Featherbeard' became obvious upon closer inspection as it seemed like plumes of feathers were poking out through the bandit's beard.

He adorned a simple beige cloak over top of what looked like an old brown miner's uniform. He wore dirty brown boots on his feet and for a hat he sported a steel helmet that ended at his brow. In his hand he carried a humongous iron club.

"So you think you're in charge do ya big guy? Baiaiaia hate to break it to ya but you picked a bad time to claim this place! Even though I'm leaving, a simple handing back over of territories just wouldn't settle well with me." Remey remarked as he stopped in front of the bandit who he was now within smelling distance of.

"You talk pretty big for a pirate I've never even heard of… Like I care though I'm just here to smash you like the pest you are and take back what is mine." Duster replied as he quickly lifted his club above his head and without a moment's hesitation he slammed it down towards Remey below him. There was no time for talk as far as he was concerned.

"Long Fold!" Remy called out as he waved his open palm in front of the club crashing down towards him. In an instant after the wave of his hand, the club seemingly folded backwards like a piece of paper being creased tightly and slammed the bandit's wrist that was still holding onto the handle.

"Aghhhhh! What are you?!" 'Featherbeard shouted as he withdrew his now severely bent club.

"I'm a folding man who ate the Baibai Baibai no Mi." Remey jeered with his tongue sticking out of his mouth.

"Devil fruits?! I can't believe they are actually real!" The bandit stuttered as he began backing up nervously. He was deeply regretting challenging such a man now but how was he supposed to know he had a power like this?

"Start believing!" Remey exclaimed as he sprinted towards the bandit and raised his hands in front of him ending in a clap. "Earth Folder!" he shouted as two massive chunks of ground beneath the bandit's feet raised up and crushed him like a flower being pressed between pages in a book.

The fight was over as fast as it started. Remey had shown that he was the real deal and that he was not about to be taken lightly. Remey turned back to his crew that were still standing behind him and grinned wildly.

"Well then back to business boys!" Remey smirked as he and his crew headed towards their ship.

**A/N: Hello readers I hope you all enjoyed this chapter of Oregano – I loved writing this chapter and can't wait to build off of what I have laid out!

Whewie now concerning the 1 year anniversary that Brizan addressed yesterday! Wow I just wanted to say thank you all so much for your continued support! It really helps all of us a tremendous amount and we are incredibly grateful for all reviews and any other support given to us!**


	33. Oregano Chapter 4 Part 2

Disclaimer: We do not own One Piece in any way.

Oregano and the Secrets of Sycamore Isle! Part Two

By: peanutbutterlung (Whale)

On Board a Marine Fleet Ship

"Jeez Louise Bo, you sure these guys don't mind?" Oregano laughed as he hobbled over a fallen marine officer whose unresponsive frame was sprawled out on the deck beneath him, currently positioned in one of the most unappealing poses imaginable.

"Shit, take a look at them and see if they mind. Don't look like they give a damn either way to me. Besides fool, they started attacking us first so don't go feeling soft towards them and shit." Bo responded as he bent over towards yet another fallen marine whose face was purpled with swollen bruises. The marine's body was limp and wiggly in Bo's massive hand. He was quickly picked up off the ground and thrown without a care over the boxer's shoulder like a sack of potatoes.

Oregano smiled as he shook his head wondering what Bo was doing with the marine he had just scooped up "What's the plan with that loosey-goose of a guy by the way?" Oregano questioned.

Bo spat back as he quickly responded. "We need some damn directions right?"

Oregano chuckled as he replied with a high voice. "Ayee Bo you sly dog! I gotcha now man - With the help of 'loosey-goose' it's gonna be Sycamore Isle here we come!"

Tompkins who was naturally stationed atop Oregano's head began to squawk in agreement with Oregano's delight. His timing was on the nose as usual, keeping up his streak of fitting in perfectly and was still blending in like a charm. All according to his devious seagull plan.

"Ohh yeah I heard ya there Tompkins!" Oregano hooted after hearing Tompkins and his agreeing bird sounds. "This is pretty exciting huh?! Shall we get going then?" Oregano grinned as he glanced up towards the seagull perched on top of his head. Tompkins gave an accepting nod and Oregano began to whoop and holler a nice "Whoooooh". He then continued to wobble around the many fallen marines that were slumped about the ship. The poor fellas never stood a chance against the mighty Bo! In Oregano's free hand he was carrying a bag of what seemed to be fresh fruits and vegetables and in his other he tightly gripped his crutch.

As he hobbled past each marine that was clearly unconscious from the beating they had received, he would whisper to them a simple phrase like. "Thanks for the food we were running a little low ya dig?" or "Polen is always tearing through our goodies so I had to borrow yours!"

Then, finally after much effort, the rookie pirate neared the makeshift plank the marines had originally tossed over to connect their ship with the Cherry Maria in hopes of a successful barrage. In doing so however they only ended up making an express way for an angry boxer to come and beat the living daylights out of every one of them. But now, before Oregano it was simply a makeshift bridge.

Oregano quickly glanced back behind him facing the marine ship and shouted. "Poleeeeeeeeen! Come on you biscuit! We are leaving now!"

A dramatic and hefty silence fell fast upon the scene at hand after Oregano's calling though, this was because no response was made in return. He and Tompkins both instinctively raised their eyebrows towards the sky as they anxiously waited with baited breath to see that super cool, fuzzy koala come running towards them. Was he making a dramatic entrance perhaps? They would just have to wait and see.

The silent seconds the two of them were currently experiencing grew ever longer and rapidly began to weigh upon their very souls. With great force and presence the wait weighed down upon them, much like that of an elephant in an extravagant circus act of sorts trying to balance its massive weight on an inflatable ball.

'Where could that scoundrel of a koala be?' Oregano and Tompkins both wondered mouth and beak agape respectively. They were both motionless as they desperately awaited a sign of emergence from their number one favorite marsupial.

"Shit Oregano, you must be tripping damn well now son! That cat never left the damn ship in the first place. So come on let's get moving." Bo impatiently shouted over from the deck of the Cherry Maria. Polen was all the while clinging tightly to his shoulder. Oregano turned to listen to Bo's booming voice, and upon doing so noticed Polen! Oregano was awe struck at this sight, and Polen instantly lowered his 'Cool' shades to reveal his beady little koala eyes and gave Oregano a teasing glare. He then proceeded to wink like some 'hotshot' actor would in some big-time action hero movie or something.

"Ayeeeeeeeee Polen! I should have known you sucker!" Oregano laughed in a playful frenzy that consisted of both surprise and excitement. "I'll get you for this! You got some nerve making Tompkins and I look like weenies over here!" He added as he began to finally make his way across the rickety plank that was connecting the marine ship to the Cherry Maria before him.

"That's what you get for calling him a damn biscuit." Bo murmured to himself. He was slightly amused by the koala's continued treatment towards Oregano, and quickly found himself realizing to his surprise that Polen was starting to grow on him. He shrugged it off swiftly though not wanting to accept it so fast, as he darted his attention back to Oregano and watched the wacky pirate start to wobble his way across the plank.

Oregano, who still had his mind set on getting back at Polen with a good wrestling match to teach him a lesson or two, was hobbling about. As he continued to struggle along, amounts of sheer excitement began to build up inside him. His already ridiculously staggering gait became even more dramatic because of this. It was a very poor time for such a thing to happen due to his current location atop a flimsy plank which of course was positioned right above the West Blue below.

"Whoa Nelly!" Oregano gulped as he realized he was currently swaying like a mad man above the deep ocean blue. He then desperately started poking about with his crutch trying to find the best angle to keep himself steady on this wild ride.

Tompkins was all the while beginning to feel mighty nervous due to this sticky situation and began to squawk and flap his wings in dismay. He didn't have to try and fit in with Oregano this time for they both shared the same uneasy feelings and there was no hiding it.

"Shit… Don't tell me he is gonna…" Bo began to utter in the most agitated tone he could muster as he watched the scene before him until his thoughts of dismay were actually proven wrong. Oregano had somehow managed to balance himself long enough for the board to stop swinging. He was safe.

"Boy oh boy that was close!" Oregano laughed as he looked around to see Bo and Polen shaking their heads in unison.

"Whew, now let's go about this in a more timely fashion right Tompkins?" Oregano laughed as Tompkins let out a sigh of relief.

"Alright easy does it." Oregano slowly spoke as he raised his 'good' leg up even slower. Then with the utmost care he placed the foot down in front of him. The scene at hand was nerve-racking and the tension could be cut with a knife.

"Damn it Oregano! Do you need me to come out there and carry your damn ass off the plank?!" Bo frantically shouted.

"Aye no worries Bo-man! I got this all under control!" Oregano replied as he took another step, this time with his broken leg which landed on the board making a rather unusual sound. The sound made Oregano's face wrinkle up like a prune with dismay, and with no delay what so ever, a sudden snap sent the board falling in two pieces towards the water beneath him.

"Oueeeeeeeeeeeee!" Oregano hollered as he fell straight through the air like an oiled gazelle, tumbling dramatically towards the ocean below, bag of produce all the while still in hand.

Tompkins instinctively flew off the newbie pirate's noggin and perched upon the outer railing on the wall of the Cherry Maria. He wasn't about to be a wet bird that was for sure. He liked fitting in with the 'dry' members of the Oregano pirates better for the time being.

Oregano pouted as he watched his feathered pal ascend from the terrible predicament he was still unluckily in, and wished he too could have simply flown away. For it wasn't long before he hit the water that was anxiously waiting below, waiting to engulf him with its cold wetness with a unwelcoming splash!

3 Hours Later On Board the Cherry Maria

"Whewie now that's better!" Oregano exclaimed as he exited his sleeping quarters and entered the living room. He had taken a shower and put some dry clothes on and was all ready to go now. He wore a heather gray t-shirt with a smiling lime face on the front, a pair of navy cargo shorts and a salmon colored sneaker with neon green stripes on the side of it on his good foot.

Tompkins was in the living room waiting for him and upon seeing his jolly captain enter the room he took his rightful spot atop his head.

"Alrighty Tompkins! Thanks for waiting for me pal! I'm guessing everyone else is up on the deck!" Oregano spoke as he began to make his way to the staircase at a snail's pace due to his hobbling.

After a strenuous battle of Oregano creeping up the stairs which had quickly become his greatest of adversaries, the rookie pirate had made it to the top and he and Tompkins were like a happy bundle of plums because they had finally made it. Oregano poked the door leading outside to the deck with his crutch and pushed it forward.

Bo was currently standing at the front of the ship. It was obvious his focus was completely on Nightbright and Sycamore Isle. To his left the marine that he had previously thrown over his shoulder like a dishrag was now tied up with a rope beside the boxer's massive feet. Without turning his head back towards Oregano to acknowledge his presence, the boxer muttered. "That shit's Sycamore in the distance. This punk marine here has us on that old bitch Nightbright's cheating ass tail now."

Oregano perked up upon hearing Bo's words. "Right on man! Sycamore Isle is bound to be a great time!" Oregano responded with joy as he wobbled up to the front of the ship to stand beside Bo. After looking off into the distance and seeing the island on the ocean's horizon, Oregano grinned and then directed his attention to the pitiful marine still sitting on the deck next to Bo's feet. His face was still as purple from the bruises as it ever was. His eyes were practically swollen shut and he was drooling up a storm from where he couldn't seem to close his obviously dislocated jaw.

"Yikes poor guy, you really laid a number on him didn't you Bo?" Oregano spoke to the boxer.

"Don't tell me you have pity for this slimeball? He would've had no problem taking you into jail. Capturing 'Triple Six' Oregano would make this marine one damn happy bastard. " Bo retorted.

"Haha well that's true I suppose huh? I guess it's really the whole being tied up with a rope that makes him look so helpless. In his current condition I don't think he could be a problem to anyone so why the rope?" Oregano asked.

Bo shook his head and a slight wave of satisfaction swept over his face for an instant. "Wasn't me who tied him up though." He quickly replied.

Oregano face faulted upon hearing such words and Tompkins was right behind him with a scrunched up face of his own. The two were taken aback by Bo's words and as if on cue a fuzzy koala bear lept out from behind the marine with rope in his paws and lowered his 'Cool Shades' to reveal his mischievous beady black eyes.

"Whaaa?! Polen the koala just what have you done?!" Oregano squeaked in surprise after watching Polen the dark bandit, reveal his true colors before them all, just like an overconfident villain of some sort.

Tompkins followed this squeak with a surprised noise of his own, always staying on cue with Oregano. His squeak however turned out to be more of a screech than a squeak though, and it sounded surprisingly similar to interpretations of how pterodactyls might have sounded. Oregano and Polen were both surprised by this display, but began to clap and applaud Tompkins because it was so impressive.

Not a second later however Oregano and Polen recalled the previous tension they had just been experiencing before Tompkins broke through the dramatic scene with his epic screech. Oregano leaned over towards the koala in order to start to wrestle with the fuzzy marsupial but Polen was much too fast for the currently crippled pirate and ducked and dodged his way past him and ending with a powerful kick to Oregano's crutch.

"Waaaaaa!" Oregano bellowed for an exaggerated amount of time as he tumbled and landed on the deck with a thud. Tompkins held on tight to his perch the entire fall and began to mimic Oregano's weenie baby noise he was currently making.

"Polen you're playing dirty you better…" Oregano began to speak but a sudden thundering boom caused him, Tompkins and Polen to all roll up into tiny balls in fear.

"You fools better cut that shit out mad quickly! I have had enough of it! Coming all around me, making a damn racket and shit. I mean damn, don't think I won't beat ya asses, cause you better know I will in a damn heartbeat son!" Bo roared, creating the most terrifying setting Oregano, Polen and Tompkins had ever been in. Each of them had sad puppy dog eyes as they stared up at the boxer before them.

Bo looked down over them all and upon noticing that Polen had the sad eyes as well quickly added. "Shoot that wasn't directed at you cat, I know they came over and started messing with you and shit. Don't worry we still cool man."

Polen whipped upright in complete and utter joy as Bo's words gracefully fell upon his fluffy ears. He was so happy that he hadn't upset his idol and it was all Tompkins and Oregano's fault.

Bo held his massive hand out towards the koala, and Polen happily trotted up the boxer's muscular arm and clung on to his massive shoulder. Peering down from the great height towards Oregano who was currently curled up in the fetal position, and Tompkins who was just as curled on top of Oregano's head, Polen began to stick his tongue out to mock the two trouble makers.

A few seconds longer of this moment of shame past before Oregano peaked one eye open and made an 'O' shape with his mouth. Words quickly began to fall out at an extreme speed. "That seriously was a dirty move though Polen! You really hurt my boo-boo leg!"

Oregano was back to his original self and slowly wobbled up to a standing position with his crutch that he had recovered off the deck beside him.

Bo and Polen were now back to looking out over the front of the ship and were not paying Oregano any attention.

Oregano began to pout, but as he looked out to where Bo and Polen were currently facing, the island in the distance was steadily getting closer.

"So Bo quick question…" Oregano began to speak.

Bo turned his head and raised an eyebrow. He could tell Oregano was being genuine and not joking around anymore by the sound of his voice.

"With the marine so beat up and unconscious how the heck did you manage to get directions out of him?"

Bo began to laugh as he pulled out a bag of what appeared to be salt from his athletic short's pocket. "This is Vanhoogen grade smelling salts son. One whiff of this shit and you get mad awake." Bo laughed.

"Hah that sure is handy!" Oregano added, happy that Bo was able to wake the marine up and save them time.

Bo shook his head as he turned his head and spat. "You wanna see how it works?" He asked.

Oregano and Tompkins were giddy with excitement upon hearing this and begged the boxer for a show. Polen all the while was acting like he was super cool, which he was, but in this case he felt so especially because he had already seen the wondrous smelling salts in action before.

Bo leaned down next to the marine who was still out cold, he was colder than the North Blue on Christmas morning in fact. This was not an issue however because once Bo held the smelling salts up to his nose an unnerving sound filled the air with misery. The man was reunited with the pain that had caused him to fall unconscious in the first place.

"Yeeeeeeeeeeeeeeesh… Poor guy…" Oregano muttered softly. Tompkins slowly nodded. They felt very uncomfortable and wished that they had in fact not asked Bo to show them how the smelling salts worked.

Bo turned his attention towards Oregano and Tompkins and simply said. "Strong shit huh?"

Meanwhile on Sycamore Isle

A slow shuffling of dragging feet could be faintly heard through the sandy roads of Sycamore Isle's small port city of Ushmel. The footsteps pattered their way weakly along the coarse gritty terrain until they finally came to a stop in front of an old raggedy door belonging to a somewhat dilapidated house. The person the footsteps belonged to let out a pitiful sigh and pressed open the old door before them.

The door to the house let out a creak that was slow and pitiful. When it finally opened all the way, the man was revealed to all present within the house. A sudden shout rang out in response to this.

"Daveed! Oy Daveed my son where have you been!? You have worried your mother to the brink of death! I swear it to you now you have!" A woman shouted as she bolted up from the chair she was currently sitting at. "Just what do you think you are doing leaving unannounced like you did? And on top of that you don't come back for a whole week!?" The mother's speech was rapid, and her voice carried a mixture of anguish, and relief alike. Tears were pouring down her face as she ran from her chair to embrace her son.

"Forgive me Mother. I know it was a mistake… but I never would have imagined this trip taking so… so long." Daveed regretfully replied to his sobbing mother who was currently hugging him so tightly that it hurt.

"Trip?!" The mother quickly questioned her son's previous statement. The vagueness she detected in his voice began to lead her into expecting the worst.

Meanwhile an excited shout filled the room as a young girl came running to hug Daveed who had still not escaped his mother's tight embrace.

"Naja it's so good to see you baby sister." Daveed sweetly spoke to the young girl who was now squeezing him tightly as well.

"Where have you been brother? Did I hear you tell Mother that you had been on a trip?" Naja asked her older brother with a great amount of interest resonating in her voice.

"Yes Daveed what is this trip? Don't tell me you went and volunteered. You know how your Father and I warned you." Tears were beginning to fall even faster down the mother's face as pools of sadness began to grow ever larger under her eyes. She knew all too well what the answer was, this because of the way Daveed's expression was changing before her as she spoke.

"Mother forgive me I had no choice. With Father bedridden how else were we to get enough money?" Daveed replied as tears began to fall down his face as well. The looks of shear pain his words were having on his Mother were too much for him to handle.

"Nooooooo! No, no, no! Please Daveed tell me that you are lying to me please my son! I can't handle any more heartbreak!"

Daveed closed his eyes tightly. He was able to reach into his coat pocket and revealed a brown sack that when held up made a sound of rustling of metal. "This should be able to buy enough food for us for about a month." Daveed replied as he hung his head, trying his best to avoid seeing his Mother's crying face. As he looked down his eyes met with his sister Naja who even though was only nine years old, knew all too well of the situation at hand. Her eyes were streaming with tears as well as she looked up towards him.

"Your health Daveed… your health comes first! You know what has happened to those who have volunteered in the past!" His Mother cried. She did not even look towards the bag of coins her son was displaying.

"Mother, I'm strong and the men there told me that I was a perfect candidate. The volunteers in the past were not in as good health as myself." Daveed replied trying his best to sooth his Mother's agony.

"They lie! Don't you know they lie!? They tell that line to everyone and you know it - Those men are evil! They don't care about us. Ever since they came to Sycamore Isle what has happened hmm? Nothing but pain and death!" Daveed's Mother angrily replied from the pain lingering inside her. Almost everyone in the village of Ushmel was either sick or dying. Neighbors, relatives the elderly and the youth. It was a terrible time for the village, and for Daveed's Mother, she feared that her family could soon fall apart.

With all the crying taking place, a weak and muffled voice choked up from a back room in the house. "Yasmine… please go easy on him. What he did was foolish but getting upset is the worst thing we can do at this point. *Cough Cough* Keep your spirits strong or the sickness within us all will surely take advantage of any moment of weakness."

The voice was coming from Daveed and Naja's father. He had been sick for many weeks and unable to get out of the bed on his own. The sickness was making him weaker and weaker every day and up until now he had not been able to speak but a mere two or three word sentence at a time.

"Fuuad!" The mother urgently called back to her husband. Surprised that he had enough strength to muster up such words.

"How has Father been?" Daveed asked his mother as they all hurried to see him in the back room of the house. The attention was finally off of him so he was able to ask about his Father's condition now."By the way I managed to see Ameera on my way back into town earlier, but she didn't tell me much. She said she was in a hurry." He added as his Mother, Naja and himself entered the back room his Father was currently resting in.

"Ameera was out in town!?" His mother Yasmine shouted.

"Yes, she spoke of some errands she was planning on completing." Daveed replied. He was unsure what to make of his Mother's worriment because he figured the errands his other sister Ameera were running were for the family.

"Oy nothing is well in our village!" Yasmine exclaimed.

"What do you mean Mother? What's your concern? Is it about Ameera?" Daveed asked worried at what could be the reason his Mother was upset for yet another time.

His Mother was quiet as tears rolled down her face. Daveed looked away from his Mother and down at Naja who took a deep breath when her eyes met her older brothers. The young girl took a deep breath and spoke up.

"I heard Ameera talking with two men in an alley way in town last week. They were talking about a special meeting or something. I was hiding a good distance away so I couldn't make everything out that they were saying. When I told Mother about what I had heard she…" Naja stopped speaking as her Mother raised her hand up to her and pulled her in closely and held her tightly against her side.

"Tonight is the *Cough Cough* meeting of the Shedyed. They are going to start their revolution against… Skrullton Labs." Fuuad spoke weakly from the bed.

"The Shedyed?! Ameera is with the Shedyed?!" Daveed shouted as he turned quickly away from his family before him.

"Daveed come back here this instant!" His Mother shouted at him as he suddenly ran out of the house.

Daveed had been facing a great deal of pain and discomfort earlier, but these feelings were in the back of his mind by this point. His sister's well-being was giving him the adrenaline boost he needed to dull the pain. He had to stop her before it was too late.

"Ameera please just wait! Don't do anything foolish..." He spoke under his breath as he shook his head. The words left a bad taste in his mouth. He realized how much of a hypocrite he was being since he had done his very own foolish act by agreeing to be Skrullton Lab's guinea pig. He couldn't get caught up in this now of all times though, Ameera could still be saved from making her mistake and he was going to try his hardest to find her!

** A/N: Hey everyone! I really hope you enjoyed this chapter! I had so much fun writing this one and I hope it shows. Please feel free to comment on the chapter as always!**


	34. Oregano Chapter 4 Part 3

Disclaimer: We do not own One Piece in any way.

Oregano and the Secrets of Sycamore Isle! Part Three

By: peanutbutterlung (Whale)

On the Sandy Streets of Ushmel

A rapid pattering of footsteps could be heard racing down the sand covered streets of Ushmel, as Daveed desperately ran in hopes of finding his sister Ameera before it was too late.

It was a little after noon and the life found in this port city was nothing like it once was in the past. Not so long ago it was a bustling town filled to the brim with life and energy, but this was all before the day Skrullton Lab's dark presence cast a dreadful shadow over the island.

Currently there were only a handful of villagers that Daveed spotted outside of their houses, and none of them were looking pleased or content for that matter. These villagers standing outside were the lucky ones some might say. That is if luckiness was watching your family and neighbors all wither away around you. Up until now they had avoided the curious sickness clinging onto the people of Ushmel, but in reality they had been hit just as hard.

Taking care of their weakening loved ones was taking its noticeable toll on all of them. Fatigue and sorrow was painted in a deep hue across their weary faces, resulting in a hauntingly real expression for all to see. An expression mixed from the pessimistic reaches of their souls mixed with the daunting depression that hung over them every day.

Daveed couldn't allow himself to get bogged down in all the gloom around him however as he continued to run by, tricking his mind into ignoring the terrible sights with what could be described as a pair of mental blinders that helped him ignore the miserable scene around him.

He was twisting and turning down every alleyway and back street that he could see. As he ran, a wave of exhaustion began to rapidly drain him however, he desperately fought on in hopes of somehow finding Ameera though. This battle against his own weakening body continued for only a couple seconds unfortunately. His steps stuttered to a halt before he knew it, immense pain had set in his lungs, and his body was telling him it could do no more. It suddenly became hard for him to breathe as he grabbed his chest in agony.

"Ahh ah ahaa… Damn it all… Aha ahaa… I can't stop now, I must keep going!" He exclaimed as he gritted his teeth and exhaled forcefully, desperately trying to force his lungs to fill with air on his own accord.

He then took a series of deep and painful breaths, each one hurting more than the last. His lungs ached as they began to swell with the little air they were able to muster.

"Ahhhh… Ameera, please just wait for me..." He muttered as he pitifully took a step forward.

He was off balance and fought to stay upright as a sequence of wobbling steps quickly followed suit, ultimately causing him to fall face first into the sandy street beneath him.

Sand kicked up from the fall into his eyes causing them to blur his vision, and they watered due to the irritation. It was salt in the wound in this situation, he was already practically paralyzed with pain from his newly acquired sickness, and now he was face first in the gritty sand.

He closed his irritated eyes and realized just what a state he was truly in. The tests they had done to him at the lab were showing him absolutely no mercy. He knew the wicked devils at Skrullton Labs truly had seen him as nothing but a research specimen.

Now with his current lack of mobility, sight and strength, he simply laid pitifully in the middle of the quiet road. No one was around to see him at this current location, and dead silence was all that fell on his ears. That is until a sudden shout boomed, echoing off the buildings in the area around him.

Meanwhile on the Other Side of Ushmel

"Damn where the hell did I end up?! That marine came to this filthy piece of shit island?! I haven't seen a damn person in this whole city so far! It's a ghost town!" Bo spat out in disgust as he walked along what he expected to be a main road within the city Ushmel.

"Well this is just great… Shit at least I get a break from Orlando and his wack-ass self for a while… No wait, shit… names Oregano isn't?" Bo muttered to himself as he continued to look for anyone he could find so he could ask where Nightbright might be on this island.

He and Oregano had split ways when they reached the docks much to Oregano and Polen's dismay, but Bo wasn't gonna have Oregano slowing him down wobbling up and down all over the place.

As Bo walked and continued along the empty streets before him he began to wonder if the marine hostage he had beaten to a pulp into revealing where Nightbright was had pulled a damn fast one on. The streets were as vacant as could be so he was beginning to think he had been lured off Nightbright's trail and sent to some deserted island. Much to his relief after contemplating such thoughts however, a raspy voice called out to him as he made his way by an alleyway.

"Ohhh my how interesting... Someone not from around here I see. This town doesn't get many new faces to look at… heeernaherherhraa." The voice cackled out from the alleyway. All the while the man who owned this voice slowly emerged before Bo who had quickly stopped to listen.

"Damn, I finally find a person from this empty-ass town and it turns out to be a screw ball… Man listen, I'm mad tight on time right now so can ya just tell me where I can find a damn marine named Nightbright here?" Bo shouted hastily at the man in front of him.

The man stood crookedly before Bo, he appeared to be around 5 feet in height and was husky for his size. The man had skin reminiscent of a crumpled up paper bag. He had very thin hair that lay in long separated black sprigs atop his balding head. His face was plump and had a great amount wrinkles around his eyes to boot.

At first glance one might see his face and say that it looked as if someone stuck a syringe into a raisin and filled it up with apple juice, or any other kind of juice for that matter. He had beady little eyes that he hid behind a pair of thick orange rimmed glasses, and for clothes he wore what seemed to be an extra-large purple fleece sweater with light green stars on it that was stretched and reached down past his knees. This sweater covered up if the man was wearing any shorts... or not. He also sported a pair of brown sandals on his feet.

"Heeernahaer!" The man replied with a sassy rasp of a sound Bo could only guess was done in order to clear the man's throat.

"The names Satchamo Jones, and don't get me mistaken… I'm not from this city, I'm simply an observer of peculiar occurrences heeernananaher! Now as for your interesting question…"

"Damn it I didn't ask for your life story fool! If I have to listen to you clear that throat of yours any longer I'm gonna punch you threw a wall!" Bo quickly interrupted Satchamo who was grating on his nerves to a point of no return. Grating away much like a waiter you would find at a fancy restaurant, a waiter, unfortunately hard of hearing, and although you politely request for him to stop, he kept on grating away at the cheese he had offered you, all the while making a mountain of shredded cheese atop your nice plate of pasta.

Satchamo simply grinned back at Bo upon seeing the reaction he had stirred up within him. His thin lips peeled back revealing a lumber pile in his mouth which was what he called teeth.

"Let's not get testy now, I'll show you where you can find him herheeeenar." Satchamo replied.

"Shit then betta make it damn quick fella – I'm talking real damn quick cause I can't stand listenin' to your gross throat noises, and your off the wall 7 O' clock shit any longer." Bo explained, making a terribly annoyed face at the man.

In an Abandoned Building in Another Part of Ushmel

"I'm glad you were all able to come… my fellow brothers and sisters of the Shedyed." A man in a black hooded robe began to speak to a group of six people that were in front of him.

This group meeting was currently being held in a dimly lit circular building on the outskirts of Ushmel, and the people present were all surrounding the man who began to speak towards them and were arranged in a semi-circle like manner.

These few members that had come, had trickled in one by one in secret sometime earlier, escaping the daylight and any unneeded attention. They all adorned either black robes or darkly colored clothing and after waiting for anyone else to show up, it seemed like these six were all that would be making it to the meeting today.

A feint hum followed after the man at the center of the group spoke, as those members of the Shedyed present showed they understood what this meeting was all about.

The Shedyed are a small group of Ushmel citizens pushed to the extreme under the conditions of life present in their hometown. Their numbers are small due in part to the fact that so many residents in Ushmel even can't walk out of their home, much less join a revolutionary group or stand up for themselves.

Even though the Shedyed see themselves as the self-proclaimed last hope, or heroes of Ushmel, many residents see the actions of the Shedyed as acts that will only worsen the conditions in their town. In part this is simply do to fear of opposition, however others expect retaliation would be the outcome of such acts.

In the recent weeks the Shedyed have gone from simply breaking windows and causing minor disturbances at Skrullton labs, to now breaking in and stealing supplies. This group truly revolves around desperation and deviousness, but with low numbers that's of course all they can afford to do. As of now Skrullton's response has not been anything larger than upping the security presence at night. For many members of the Shedyed, this reaction seems far too small despite the size of disturbances that they are causing. Many are suspicious that the marines haven't been contacted yet by Skrullton Labs to try and put a halt to the break-ins altogether.

These were all thoughts buzzing around in the mind's of the members of the Shedyed present in the building this afternoon. All were silent waiting for the leader to begin speaking the details they all anxiously knew were coming.

"Tonight is the big night… Something I'm sure I don't even have to remind you all of." The man at the center of the group finally uttered from underneath his black hooded robe. He then pulled out a matchbox he was holding tightly in his hand. He tapped on the box, slid a match out and with a swift strike. He lit it and held the now twinkling flame out in front of his face. "Tonight we burn…"

As he looked at the flame dancing at the end of the match in front of him, his eyes met with a shadowy figure that had just entered the room.

The man blew out the match before him and smiled as the shadowy figure walked up and joined the group still standing in the semi-circle manner. The figure assumed her place in the formation and then in turn dropped the black scarf that was covering her face revealing herself to the group.

As the scarf was taken down the woman's naturally beautiful face was revealed. Her skin was a rich creamy light-brown color, and she had an olive toned complexion. Her hair was pitch black and shimmered in the faintly lit building. Her dark hazel eyes were piercing and of a strong and determined nature, they were sharp and cunning, making her look all the more intimidating. Her body was sleek, curvy and strong underneath her black cloth ninja-like clothing. She stood at a height of around 5 feet 7 inches. At her hips she was carrying a currently bound up whip and a cylindrical metal baton at the other.

"Ah Ameera, so glad you could join us." The man at the centered of the crowd whispered. The other Shedyed members turned and nodded to her in agreement. Tonight would certainly be a game of numbers for them, so the more the merrier.

Now Back with Bo and Satchamo

"Oh no, nuh uh son, we ain't gonna start with that crab-ass gossip now so don't you even start with that shit!" Bo responded roughly to Satchamo who was currently walking beside him up a presumably vacant street.

"Heererer well pardon me Mr. Stockston, it's just simply something big in the news these days… so I was curious, can't blame an old man for being curios about something so interesting …" Satchamo slyly replied to the boxer beside him.

"It's a damn lie! Those shit-stained marines are out to tarnish my goddamn name! I can't believe that I'm gonna have to prove it to the whole fuckin' world that Bo Stockston ain't a damn hostage here – Especially not to that cheese ball Oregano of all people and the damn petting zoo excuse for a pirate crew he has going on!" Bo spat out in disgust.

"So let's just drop this damn conversation before I drop your damn ass old man, we clear!?" Bo replied ending his heated rant, clearly getting all fired up the more he thought about the situation he was in.

Satchamo's face contorted and made a giddy-like expression at the reaction he had just witnessed from Bo. It was interactions like this that he found the most interesting to see. These reactions gave him a window that he could peer into, and by doing so, he could see just how an individual's mind worked and ticked in certain situations. It was safe to say that exchanges like this interested Satchamo to no end.

"Herrnnnera… But of course Mr. Stockston, I understand. Now where were we? Ah yes I was leading you towards Skrullton Labs. Nightbright has been seen visiting the labs here lately, if you say you heard he was coming to this island that's my guess of where he would be." Satchamo finally spoke back towards Bo.

His reply was delayed however from the sheer strain his facial muscles were stuck in from grinning so tightly in response from Bo's rant just moments earlier. Muscles so tight they could be compared to the tightest jar of pickles you have ever tried to open.

Bo looked down at Satchamo as the two continued to walk down the street and raised an eyebrow towards the stranger.

This old man was far beyond the comfort line as far as Bo was concerned. The only reason he was even giving him the time of day was because he was leading him to see Nightbright. Or so he hoped at least.

"So listen up gramps, I appreciate you helping me out and all – Even though you are a grade 'A' on the creep scale, but can't you just give me some damn directions or something instead of walking with me? Your molasses pace is about to drive me up the damn wall." Bo exclaimed agitatedly.

"I'm afraid the path to reach Skrullton Labs has far too many twists and turns in it… I better just keep guiding you heeerern." Satchamo replied. He was lying, he wasn't about to miss out on any possible excitement Bo could possibly lead him to so he was sticking with the boxer the whole way.

"Jeez ain't that some shit... damn man - I just can't get shit to come easy for me nowadays! Fine then just pick up ya damn feet a little quicker grampa, I'm trying to go and beat this fool Nightbright's ass before much longer ya dig? I mean shit, Oregano is crippled and I think he would be moving faster than you right about now."

Satchamo grinned in an incredibly wrinkly manner back at the boxer. He was intent on going slow of course to keep his time with the boxer as long as possible. "I'll get ya there soon Mr. Stockston rest assured… heherrrn."

Now on the Other Side of Ushmel back with Daveed

Daveed was dizzy, he must have passed out because he was just now coming into consciousness, his head was throbbing and his eyes were shut tight, they were resisting the light around him as best they could. He was miserable, yet he suddenly began to realize he was laying down on something soft… this was incredibly confusing to him, for he knew he had collapsed out on the rough gritty street outside.

His hands began to move gingerly and he softly began to grasp a soft fabric that was covering him up. His curiosity peaked at this point and resulted in him mustering the strength to pry his sensitive eyes open and look around him.

He was outstretched on a bed, inside a house he was unfamiliar with. He could hear a tapping and rattling of what he guessed were pots and pans in a room elsewhere in the house.

Not a second later he heard a sudden crashing noise and a cawing of a bird of some sort.

"Where in the world am I?" Daveed mumbled as he managed to slowly slide his legs off the side of the bed he was on. When his feet hit the floor they began to wiggle weakly and uncontrollably.

"Blast it! Come on focus now, for Ameera's sake you must!" He muttered to himself. Hoping his body would somehow magically work for him after being reminded of what was at stake.

Slowly he decided to try and get up off the bed, he couldn't just lay in bed with everything going on around him.

"Alright… one, two and three…" He sighed, knowing that there was a large chance he was going to fall to the ground from his legs buckling under his weight.

"Here goes nothing…" He muttered when suddenly an unexpected voice of proclamation shouted causing him to halt his movement altogether.

"Ayeee! You're finally awake my man! Good timing on your part – You're just in time for some of my Habu-Habu Spiced Dumpling Soup!"

This voice belonged to that rascal Oregano of all people! Who was currently standing propped over on his crutch in the doorway to the room. Polen was clinging to his shoulder looking like an action movie star of course, and Tompkins was all the while looking right on the money being perched tall on Oregano's noggin. What a class act some might say upon seeing this trio in action.

Oregano was busy grinning up a storm as he looked over Daveed who was looking up right back at him from the bed with shock.

Daveed was a man in his late twenties as far as Oregano could tell. He had a dark olive complexion, and for hair he had black frizzy curls that sprawled out randomly around his face and ears. His eyes were a dark hazel, and in their current condition they looked incredibly tired. His facial hair was a dramatic 5 O'clock shadow except under his lip where he adorned a small soul-patch.

As for his attire, he wore a simple white long-sleeved V-neck shirt and with that he wore a yellow and red vest on top. He wore a teal sash around his waist tied in a large knot in the front, and as for pants he sported a pair of long white, loose flowing trousers and sandals for shoes.

"So you trying to join us for lunch or what man!? The people in this house were nice enough to let me bring you in here so I decided to cook them a nice meal since they kind of look a little puny." Oregano added, waiting for Daveed to stop looking so flabbergasted and start talking back to him.

"Listen… I am grateful for your help stranger, but I need to leave now… and as for the people living here in this house, they have enough to worry about without tending to me and supplying me with a room." Daveed finally relaxed enough to reply.

"Oh dag man! I was hoping you could try some of my soup! It's my Dad's special recipe that he always used to fix me and my brother Dill when we were feeling a little ill – When we were feeling like 'Sickly Sams ourselves." Oregano grinned back at Daveed hoping he could change his mind to at least have a bowl before he left.

Daveed shook his head and sighed. "No I'm sorry, I simply don't have the time, I have a serious matter to attend to." Upon saying this he rose up to his feet from the bed praying his legs would respond accordingly. Much to his surprise, they actually did, he was shocked but instinctively started to move as he walked towards the doorway Oregano was still standing in.

Oregano pouted as he watched Daveed heading towards him and with his crutch he began to hobble out into the main living room of the house behind him to get out of Daveed's way. Tompkins was pouting just as much as Oregano, his beak was all poofed up and his cheeks were getting real nice and rosy. Once again this seagull was proving to be on point in every scene, fitting in and staying hip.

Polen on the other hand who was alert just two seconds ago, had finally become exhausted from his high levels of 'coolness' he had been sending out in massive amounts today and was currently busy catching up on some snoozing. He could fall asleep at the drop of a hat, he was truly a rotten koala!

Daveed nodded towards Oregano, recognizing that he had moved out of the doorway to clear a path for him, and as he passed him by he was filled with awe as he stared into the room he had now entered. The family members that lived in this house were all busy eating warm bowls of soup at a table in the middle of the room, and on each of their faces was an emotion that Daveed hadn't seen in months. It was faint, but after not seeing such an expression in months it was still noticeable, they looked calm.

Daveed wasn't sure if his leg strength was leaving him, or the sheer surprise of what he was witnessing was causing it, but he quickly found himself going limp and he landed with a thud as his knees hit the floor.

The family members, who were so preoccupied eating their soup, had just noticed that Daveed had entered the room and upon seeing him fall to his knees, the father of the household got up from his seat at the table and helped Daveed to an empty chair.

"Stay where you are young man, you must stay here in your current condition." The mother of the family quickly reassured Daveed as he sat at the table with a face full of disbelief. He was overwhelmed with the feelings of failure racing through his mind about Ameera, and his weakening body.

"Oregano was it?" The father at the table then spoke up softly as he raised the bowl of soup to his face and drank the remaining bit of broth at the bottom of his bowl. He then sat the bowl back down in front of him and slid another bowl in front of Daveed. "I can't put into words what I and my family are feeling right now…"

"Awww shucks Mr. Ibrilen don't mention it!" Oregano quickly replied with a smile as he hobbled over to the table the family was currently eating at. Tompkins chimed in with a chirp of agreement.

The family consisted of the father Ibrilen, his wife, and their young son who looked to be about 10 years old. Unlike most people of West Blue that would panic upon seeing the face of 'Triple Six' Oregano, most of the families in Ushmel had too much to worry about at home to be concerned with reading a newspaper, so they weren't aware of Oregano's reputation in the world.

"It's just a feel-better kind of meal if you ask me! You guys weren't looking so hot, so I just used some of the ingredients I had carried in my book bag with me and added a little of what you had here and did what I could!" Oregano explained.

The wife of the family couldn't stop her words any longer as she blurted out. "How can we repay you? We don't have any…"

"My Dad is a top notch gourmet chef, and he would always tell me the best thing someone who eats the food you make can do is to enjoy it! So let's leave it at that!" Oregano smiled as he began to hobble a little closer to the table.

Daveed was staring down at the soup bowl in front of him while all this talking was occurring around him. It had reached a point in his mind where he himself couldn't stop but blurt out the words he wanted to say.

"I can't stay here - Even if I have to crawl I must go stop my sister! I fear the worst might happen to her and I'll never be able to live with myself if I don't act now." Daveed spoke in a distraught voice.

"Stop your sister before it's too late aye?! You did mention that you had an emergency to attend to didn't you?" Oregano spoke up quickly in response to Daveed's sudden words. "Now that sounds like an adventure to me! You think I can maybe help you out!?"

** A/N: Hey there readers! This chapter was a real treat to write and I hope you enjoy reading it!

This Sycamore Isle Arc is really getting underway now – Like always please share your comments on this chapter if you can! Reading your comments is really what fuels the writing process inside of me!**


	35. Oregano Chapter 4 Part 4

Disclaimer: We do not own One Piece in any way.

Oregano and the Secrets of Sycamore Isle! Part Four

By: peanutbutterlung (Whale)

At the Scene with Oregano and Daveed

"You want to help?!" Daveed blurted out upon hearing Oregano offer his assistance on finding Ameera.

Oregano smiled as he scratched the back of his head. "Well yeah you seem like a nice guy in need of some help, and besides my friend Bo Stockston is off doing his own thing out somewhere in the city so I'm looking for something to do myself." Oregano replied.

Oregano decided to add Bo's last name in his reply to show how he had such cool friends. He didn't even take into consideration that if the family present had in fact been reading up on the papers, declaring his association with Bo would have been icing on the cake to finding out just who he actually was.

Daveed's eyes bulged upon hearing Oregano drop Bo's name so nonchalantly in his sentence. The father of the family they were currently in the house of, Ibrilen began to cough and get choked up at the mention of the boxer, his wife as well as his son were also stunned and reacting to the surprising mention of Bo Stockston as well.

They might not be up to date with current news, but Bo Stockston has been a big name in the West Blue for many years so they were incredibly familiar with him.

After the news that Oregano was tight with Bo settled in the minds of Daveed and the others present, Daveed mumbled.

"If you are friends with Bo Stockston... 'The' Bo Stockston then I'm sure you could help me." Daveed's eyes were beginning to water up with tears. "If you really are serious about helping me that is."

It was uncertain if Daveed was simply desperate for hope, or his sickness was causing him to be a little delusional, thus making his reasoning skills waver, but he was assuming that Oregano had to be more than met the eye in this case since he was associated with Bo. This was despite him being a skinny young man with a broken leg, a silly smile and two animals clinging onto him

"Heck ya man! I'm definitely down –What can I do to help…? Oh and I still haven't gotten your name." Oregano replied.

"The name is Daveed, and what I would like to ask from you is to head out towards the northern part of town. That would be taking the road outside this house and making a right. It will lead all the way through." Daveed replied as he slowly looked out the front window in order to gain a sense of where he actually was since he couldn't quite remember where he had ended up when he passed out earlier.

"When you get out there, look for anybody suspicious wearing a black robe or and dark colored clothing. If you hear any mention of the name Ameera, that is my sister… please tell her that Daveed has sent you to stop her… If you hear any mention of the Shedyed that will be a clue you are close to her." Daveed added.

Upon the mentioning the Shedyed, the family in the house were startled and taken by complete surprise. It was now all the more evident why Daveed was trying so desperately to find his sister and they felt deeply sorry for him.

"Alright Daveed I'm on it partner!" Oregano replied with a smile and a thumbs up. "So just out the house, take a right and listen for Ameera and Shedyed. I think I got it – How about you Tompkins?" Oregano asked his feathery friends who responded with a chirp and folded his wings to represent a thumbs up the best he could.

Oregano smiled and hollered up at Tompkins. "Well great we should get going then!"

Oregano then looked down at his shoulder and noticed that Polen was still snoozing away. "We'll have to fill this goober in later when he wakes up." He added as he softly rubbed the koala's fuzzy head.

"Oregano… Listen I can't thank you enough for this..." Daveed began, but was forced to stop when began to cough hard.

"Just eat some of that soup my man – There is still plenty of it on the stove everybody. " Oregano replied as he began to hobble his way towards the door. The family members and Daveed waved bye to him as he exited the home, wobbling onward on his crutch, but still looking as cool as a cucumber, or at least he hoped did.

Oregano smiled back at the family when he was outside the door, waved and then proceeded to close the door behind him.

"Well then let's get going Tompkins!" He declared ready for the adventure at hand. "And Polen…" He added shortly after with a quiet whisper.

About an Hour Later On the Western Side of Ushmel with Bo and Satchamo

"Damn old man how much longer we got?" Bo agitatedly spoke out towards Satchamo Jones, who was leading him down yet another seemingly desolate sandy road. This new road from the looks of things was now leaving the city limits and entering the countryside of the island.

It was a change of scenery that Bo was actually fond of despite the time it took to get to it. The nice scene was only helped the matter so much however for it seemed like Satchamo had been leading him in a circle, it was as if they were making intricate and confusing laps around the city up until this point. The sandy desert like conditions in Ushmel were gradually beginning to fade as sprigs of grass and other plants began to act as a buffering zone to what seemed to be prairie land in the distance.

"Herrera… My dearest apologies Mr. Stockston… I knew we would have to make a few detours because… um well because of all the construction, but I had completely forgotten that the… the um other construction… was going to be going on at the same time… heheheeeerrn." Satchamo uneasily cleared his throat as he replied to Bo trying his best to hide his lies.

"Shit, you're lying out ya goddamn teeth fool." Bo quickly retorted as he stopped walking and began to stare angrily at Satchamo. "You're wasting my time you old shit! I'm damn well certain we could have made it onto this road earlier!"

Satchamo panicked upon hearing these words from Bo. He was about to lose out on anything interesting opportunities potentially happening with Bo around. His lies had simply been too easy to read.

Satchamo began to look around frantically for anything he could use as an excuse, or anything that could help Bo not leave him, when suddenly his eyes presented before him a golden opportunity. Walking up the path towards Bo and Satchamo were what appeared to be three fishermen. This road led to a small fishing port, so seeing fisherman walking from the port to Ushmel was normal even in under the poor conditions that the town was experiencing now, fish was a staple in the town's diet.

Bo was currently turning away from Satchamo in order to go off and look for Skrullton Labs on his own, it was remarkable he wasn't currently clobbering him for wasting his time, but it was the time he lost already that was causing him to leave without making such a scene. He couldn't afford to lose anymore even if knocking Satchamo out would only take him a mere matter of seconds.

Satchamo looked up and saw the boxer leaving him and quickly shouted. "Wait Mr. Stockston! Let these people prove to you that I'm telling the truth."

Bo let out a sigh and muttered a couple curses under his breath and slowly turned his head to look at the fisherman who had walked up to Satchamo.

The fisherman were young, it was to be expected since so much of the older population was being hit hard with sickness in the town. They were now stopped behind Satchamo who was holding out his arm to prevent them from passing without first answering his little question.

Satchamo slyly gave the boys a threatening look over, he was desperate that they answer him the way he planned or else Bo would be as good as gone. Luckily he had an ace up his sleeve that he hopped would do the trick.

"Herrnnnhen… Say boys could you be so kind as to confirm something for me and my friend here?" Satchamo asked as he swiftly turned his back to the fisherman and looked over towards Bo.

The boys weren't paying much attention to Satchamo currently though for their attention was all on the boxing idol in front of them.

"Bo… Stockston…?!" The boys muttered.

Bo crossed his arms as he waited for Satchamo to hurry up and ask his question, he was getting fed up over this whole ordeal.

"Herrnhe… Boys! Listen up, this path is the way to Skrullton Labs correct?!" Satchamo shouted with a voice that was filled with anger and contempt.

Satchamo's outburst caught the boy's attention, but what really caught their eyes was what they saw behind Satchamo's back. Satchamo currently had his arms folded behind him for the boys to see, and whatever he was showing them was causing their eyes to bug out.

Satchamo slowly turned his head back to the boys who were making terribly frightened faces. His thin lips began to curl as he smiled and spoke. "Correct?"

The boys all blurted out with uneasy voices. "Yes, yes it is!"

Upon saying this, the three ran right past Bo and Satchamo as fast as they could with their fishing rods gripped tightly as they scurried away.

Bo's scowl began to intensify as he continued to look over the grinning Satchamo before him. He was confused as to why the kids reacted the way they had, heck they hadn't even asked him for an autograph before they ran off. Something was up and Bo knew it.

"I've seen shady characters plenty of times throughout my time as a boxer, and I know how to spot em' you feel me?" Bo spoke as he clenched his fists tightly. "You're pulling some real shit here, what's your damn angle?"

"Hernnn…Looks like you caught me Mr. Stockston, and here I was thinking you were just a simplistic muscle-head… Well I'll be honest with ya, I have strong fondness, well I suppose one could call it an obsession with anything I find even remotely interesting." Satchamo spoke with a slithering tongue that he rolled delicately over his wood-chip looking teeth.

"So you're just a sick twisted old man is it?" Bo responded in disgust. "Well you ain't getting anymore entertainment from me ya bastard."

"Herrnnner… Well I think I have a way of getting a tad bit more out from you! You see… Slaying the famous Bo Stockston would certainly prove for some fantastic entertainment." Satchamo laughed.

"So you trying to die then?!" Bo roared at the cocky statement that this old man had just threatened him with. He was now running towards Satchamo with a strong jab rearing back behind him. He didn't care about wasting any extra time now. He had been insulted and for that he was about to lay a beat-down on this fool.

What Satchamo did next was unbelievable to Bo however, causing him to halt his progression and skid to a stop and stare before him. Satchamo had taken his arms out from behind his back, and what was now present on them was what looked to be hundreds of sharp wooden shards poking out from underneath his skin.

"What the hell is this?" Bo shouted.

But the Boxer didn't have much time to react, for it wasn't long after he spoke that a sudden blur followed by rush of wind flew past him. Turning his head past him he saw a massive wooden spear wobbling back and forth in the ground behind him. It was jagged and sharp and had pierced into the street a good distance back.

"Herher… First time seeing a devil fruit user Mr. Stockston? Going by that rather interesting expression of bewilderment on your face I would say yes!" Satchamo commented as the wooden shards and splinters in his arms continued to expand outwards in a throbbing manner.

"Devil fruit?!" Bo yelled.

'Shit I thought those things were just a myth.' He thought to himself.

It then hit him that if they in fact were real, then that could explain all the tricks Nightbright had been using on him earlier. 'Could he be a devil fruit user as well?' he wondered. He wasn't ready to believe anything yet however. Bo was a strong skeptic of most things, but unlike Nightbright's tricks, Satchamo's were clearly more visible. This fact was beginning to make a believer out of Bo the more he struggled with the thought in his mind.

"Devil fruit, or not… I'm still gonna whoop your damn ass!" Bo quickly thundered as he blitzed Satchamo with a powerful fierceness like that of a raging lion.

Back to Oregano, Tompkins and the Snoozing Polen on the Northern Side of Ushmel

"Oyeee Tompkins I feel like we have been walking along this street for the longest time!" Oregano cried as he wiped the sweat from his brow.

Tompkins quickly followed suit as he wiped the sweat off himself as well with his wings in a dramatic fashion. He really wasn't sweating that bad, it wasn't like he was moving around since Oregano was his ride, but he was going with the flow and fitting in like usual.

Oregano had been hobbling along the streets of Ushmel heading north like Daveed had requested, but he hadn't seen anyone in black robes the whole time -And even the few people he actually did see out and about, when asked if they knew anything about the Shedyed they quickly backed away from him.

By now he had reached the outskirts of the city, and in the distance he could see a few large objects that looked a bit odd, they were shaded dark to his eyes from the angle he was looking at them from, but he figured they were just weird looking trees.

They had skinny trunks compared to their very full branches from the looks of it, and at the bottom of these trunks was what resembled gnarly roots. At the tops of each one of these trees there was also a long protruding branch that stuck up and arched over at the end resulting in a sharp point.

'Too weird to be a tree.' Oregano figured as he wondered about the shape, but eventually figured the trees might be for decoration or something and styled in some odd fashion.

Polen all the while was still sleeping away on Oregano's shoulder, which Oregano figured only a koala could do in the dry heat of this 'furnace-like' town currently under the mid-afternoon sun.

As Oregano continued to limp along it wasn't long before his broken leg started to throb. This pain made his face wince up when he set his foot on the ground. If anyone had been around to see him they might have guessed that he had just downed a bottle of vinegar since his face was so scrunched up.

"Ah jeez! This leg is giving me a fit Tompkins!" Oregano spoke out to his seagull as he began to fiddle around inside his windbreaker's pockets trying to rattle his pain medicine so that he could hear where it was located.

Tompkins was letting out big sighs and nodding his head sympathetically while this was going on. He was lifting up one of his own legs and showing Oregano that he felt his pain.

Oregano let out a big laugh at Tompkins display, which he couldn't see really all that well since the bird was always up on top of his head, but he knew Tompkins was a goof so he could only imagine what his feathery friend was up to up there doing.

Unfortunately, Oregano's laughter didn't last for long because with his continued searching for his pain pills he quickly realized that they were not with him! There was no rattle to be heard as Oregano began to flail about in his windbreaker desperately hoping to hear the sound of pills hitting against the shook his windbreaker for a good while and then desperately tried his backpack as well but no rattling could be heard in it either!

"Ayeeeee this is no good!" Oregano shouted as he began to pout.

Forgetting that Polen was still snoozing, Oregano quickly covered his mouth as to prevent the koala from becoming agitated and possibly giving him a 'death glare' or worse.

Luckily for him the koala was being a heavy sleeper and didn't react to the shout, or the viscous shaking of the windbreaker that he had done earlier and completely forgot about. Although Polen hadn't reacted to Oregano's display, out of the corner of Oregano's eye he noticed that something had. The trees that he saw in the distance began to move! Oregano figured his eyes were playing tricks on him but after rubbing them thoroughly and looking again he realized he had seen things correctly.

"Whoa we gotta check this out Tompkins!" Oregano exclaimed, switching from complaining about his lack of pain pills to now being his usual curious and adventurous self.

Tompkins nodded in agreement, and the two began to make their way to the weird trees before them. It didn't take them long however to begin to see just what the shadowy figures actually were.

The trunks of these trees were actually legs with monstrous talons at the end of them! The full branches that Oregano had once thought he had seen were actually a solid body – A solid, massive feathery body! The single branch sticking out at the top of each tree turned out to be a strong powerful neck, and at the end was a massive head with menacing eyes and a crushing beak. These trees were actually moa birds!

These moa birds stood at an intimidating 14 feet in height and were as strong and sturdy as could be. There seemed to be around 10 of the massive creatures present at this location around Oregano but more could be close by as far as Oregano could tell. It was obvious that this was in fact a genuine moa herd.

Oregano and Tompkins were both gazing up at these massive creatures who were certainly keeping keen eye's on them as well.

After much staring at the wondrous sight before them, Oregano finally whispered. "Hey Tompkins… You speak bird… Try and see if one of them will let me ride on it, my leg is killing me!"

Tompkins momentarily face faulted upon hearing such a request. He of course knew how to speak bird, but these were like no birds he had ever seen. To be completely frank, he was a little nervous. But he didn't want to disappoint his captain, so he passionately cleared his little birdy throat and took a deep breath.

"Chirp, chirp, chirp, chirpity chirp, chirpy, chirp, chirp, chirp… Squawk!" Tompkins began to call out to the herd before them.

Oregano was grinning super big at this spectacle he had found himself in and watched as the massive birds before him began to turn their heads and attention towards them.

It appeared that the words Tompkins had said had been understood, as one of the moa slowly crept over towards Oregano, Tompkins and the snoozing Polen. It was a female from the looks of it and it seemed very interested in what was going on now that Tompkins had spoken.

When the moa had reached them, the bird slowly bent its neck down and looked Oregano right in the face. Continuing to make eye contact with Oregano the massive moa began to caw.

"Brakaw! Kaw, Kaw!" The moa responded to the earlier statement made by Tompkins, or at least that's what Oregano figured. He was hoping this bird didn't expect him to understand what she was saying so he just kept on grinning.

Tompkins was quick to reply with a fast series of more squawks and other bird noise gibberish after the moa had spoken.

All the while the other moa birds in the herd present were beginning to crowd around at the unusual spectacle surrounding them.

The moa at hand was still staring Oregano over, and after Tompkins had replied once more the massive bird peered down at Oregano's broken foot. The bird stared at the leg for a couple of seconds and suddenly a tear began to fall down its face!

The bird let out a sorrowful cry and immediately nuzzled Oregano with its strong and powerful neck.

"Awww shucks! What a sweet bird!" Oregano bellowed as he wrapped his arms around the moa bird's neck. Tompkins was wrapping his wings around the bird's neck as well. It was a lovely group hug… too bad that stinker Polen was asleep and was missing out on this wonderful moment, but Oregano figured he could surely hug the moa whenever he woke up.

They had all become fast friends already! Oregano wasn't sure what Tompkins had said to this moa, but he knew that this seagull of his had to be one smooth talker.

The moa before them quickly lowered itself down to the ground so that Oregano could hop on. Oregano balanced himself as he carefully folded his collapsible crutch and stuffed it into his backpack. Then with the utmost care, he slowly swept his broken leg over the birds back and with one final push with his good foot, he positioned himself on top of the moa's back.

"Alright were on ya!" Oregano hollered, the moa then pressed up with its bent legs and stood tall and proud.

The scene at hand was now Tompkins sitting atop Oregano's head, Polen sleeping on his shoulder and Oregano sitting on the back of an amazing moa! It looked as if he and Polen were ingredients in-between these two birds thus resembling a sandwich of sorts!

"This is amazing!" Oregano shouted with a smile as he patted the back of the moa he was riding on. "Hey moa bird, can I call you Nyree perhaps? I'd love to be able to associate you with a name!"

The moa happily cawed back in response and it was from that moment on that her name was Nyree.

Oregano and Tompkins were hooting and hollering as Nyree just trotted around. The rest of the moa heard went back to grassing in the field they were in, but Nyree was all about giving the boys an exciting time.

She would run and jump and they were all having the time of a lifetime. All this jumping around however was beginning to disturb the koala currently in dreamland on Oregano's shoulder. Polen let out a few huffs and puffs, unsure of what to make of all this unusual jostling he was experiencing. It was safe to say he had never been on the back of a moa before so this feeling was very foreign to him.

After a few more jumps and turns that were performed by Nyree, and the continued racket that Oregano and Tompkins were making, the koala finally decided to open up his beady little eyes.

Sheer terror hit the fuzzy marsupial upon doing so, as this surprising way to wake up caused him to jolt to attention. He quickly wriggled his way around to Oregano's chest and squeezed as tightly as he could. He was too confused to gnaw of wrestle with Oregano for the time being since he was so shocked.

"Oye oye! Poleeeeeen! Nice to see you awake!" Oregano spoke to his wiggly koala bear. He patted Nyree's neck and motioned that she halt for a moment to he could explain the situation to his fluffy little pal.

After Oregano explained everything to Polen that had happened since the event with Daveed, and all the way up until now, Oregano quickly realized that he should get back to the mission at hand and continue his search for Ameera and any sign of the Shedyed.

He was about to give Nyree the sign to walk into town so they could continue the search, but by now Polen had regained composure and wasn't about to let Oregano get away with giving him such a rude awakening.

The koala pounced on top of Oregano's head, much to both Tompkins and Oregano's surprise! The koala quickly began to wrestle with the seagull and proceeded to chew on Oregano's head.

"Yieeee! Oregano hollered as a dust cloud of a brawl began to take place on Nyree's back.

Nyree looked back at the group she was carrying around and a sweat drop slowly began to trickle down her face. The massive moa simply waited patiently for the skirmish to end - And not too long after it started, it ended in laughs all around.

Oregano, Polen and Tompkins were all panting and catching their breaths in-between laughing their heads off. They were just like siblings always getting into roughhousing games.

Nyree simply shook her head and began to laugh as well. The times were good, but Oregano eventually regained composure and pointed back towards Ushmel.

"Time to continue the search!" Oregano bellowed and Nyree began to run down the sandy street they were on and headed back into town.

About an Hour Later with Oregano and Crew in Ushmel

"Yikes, we aren't having a bit of luck!" Oregano muttered to his animal companions.

He was surely attracting attention from more townsfolk now that he was riding on the back of a giant moa, but with all the extra attention he brought to him, he would lose it all in an instant when he asked about the Shedyed.

"What crummy luck! We just need to find these Shedyed people that Daveed told us about… but we can't even seem to get any clues about them!" Oregano sighed.

Polen was currently propped up tall on Oregano's shoulder looking out for any people to possibly ask questions to. He was definitely fulfilling his crew position of look-out.

It wasn't long before the super cool marsupial had spotted two people heading their way in fact. Polen lowered his 'cool' shades to make sure he was seeing correctly and he began to signal to Oregano about the two people walking their way in the street.

"Good eye Polen!" Oregano said as he praised his koala. "Let's go talk to them!" Oregano called out to Nyree followed by a squawk from Tompkins in agreement.

As they neared the two strangers walking towards them, Oregano shouted out. "Hey can you help us? We are looking for a group called the Shedyed."

Unlike many other villagers, these two individuals did not run away upon hearing such a request. In fact they continued to walk up to where Oregano and the crew were now standing still at.

When the two strangers got close enough to see Oregano their eyes bulged as they both shouted. "Shit its 'Triple Six'!"

These two individuals were both adorned in what appeared to be lab coats. The one on the left was a man with a relatively young face. He had red hair that was parted in a dramatic fashion in the front of his head. He had freckles, light green eyes and noticeably large front teeth. He was small in stature reaching what Oregano guessed was about 5 feet 5 inches. Besides his lab coat the man wore simple khaki pants with brown dress shoes. And on his belt he carried a pistol in a case.

Beside him was a woman with dark brown hair and had a face that looked a little too old for her. She had blue eyes and an oddly stumpy neck. She stood at around 5 feet 8 inches and had an average build. Along with her lab coat she wore a long blue dress underneath it, and black flat-bottomed shoes. She carried a gray satchel on her shoulder as well.

"Michelle if 'Triple Six' gets involved with the Shedyed who knows what Skrullton could be in for!" The man spoke up in an uneasy tone.

"Like I don't know that already Venny, we'll just have to stop him here." Michelle spoke back to her partner.

Oregano, Polen, Tompkins and Nyree were all standing in front of these two who had been whispering amongst each other this whole time.

"Ummm excuse me? We are looking for the Shedyed could you help…?" Oregano began but was quickly interrupted by an unexpected gun shot that went whizzing past them. Nyree was amazingly agile and sidestepped out of the way just in time however!

"We are gonna kill you 'Triple Six' Oregano! Skrullton Labs can't afford to have you join forces with the Shedyed!" The man named Venny shouted as he held his pistol that was still smoking out towards Oregano.

His partner Michelle on the other hand had taken out what appeared to be a long metal chain out of her satchel. The chain seemed to have sharp hooks on either end. She was now twirling it about as she menacingly stared down at Oregano and his animal posse around him.

"What in the world was that for?! You know guns are pretty dangerous." Oregano exclaimed as he shrugged his shoulders way up high.

"Nyree let's get out of here girl!" Oregano called out to his moa friend. "These guys are crazy and I won't be having anything to do with them!"

Nyree nodded and began to bolt away and proceeded to turn down the nearest street corner.

Polen was shivering nervously and was even shaking Oregano due to how scared he was. Tompkins was busy imitating laughter the best a bird could do because that was all Oregano was doing as they escaped the two wackos back there.

"Who were those goofballs?!Some people am I right guys?" Oregano commented. His eyes were closed because he was laughing so hard but a sudden halt in Nyree's progress caused him to pop them back open.

They were now face to face with what one could describe as a 'wall' of chains hooked in tightly to buildings on either side of the street they were running on. The chains had been forced into the walls so hard that cracks were now forming where the chains stuck out from.

"Think you know your way around this city better than us? We weren't joking when we said we were going to kill you 'Triple Six'."

A familiar voice boomed. It belonged to Michelle and she was now swinging two long metal chains in each of her hands. Behind her yet another wall of chains could be seen blocking the road on that side of the street as well.

Michelle and Venny had the group cornered now! There was only about 30 feet separating Oregano and gang from these two new enemies now. It appeared like there was no choice but to fight.

"Well shoot… This is a pain!" Oregano exclaimed as he patted Nyree on the back. "Sorry to get you in the middle of this mess, I have what some might call… bad luck." He then added with a laugh.

Nyree shook her head fiercely in reply. She was showing no sign of fear or hesitation. She was ready to back up her new found friends.

"Nyree you are a true pal!" Oregano exclaimed as he then looked at the approaching adversaries.

"Well, let's see here." Oregano began but was cut off when Venny took yet another shot at him.

Nyree gracefully avoided the attempt and continued to stand strong awaiting a response from Oregano.

"As I was saying let's get rid of that gun first! Nyree you just keep doing your thing girl! Tompkins and Polen…" Oregano paused as he felt his koala shiver when he mentioned his name. "Hey don't you worry my fellas I think I got an idea!"

Oregano then looked at Venny dead on, he reached into the front of his pants where he kept his pistol and quickly pulled it out.

"Alright Nyree you won't have to dodge any more bullets in five, four, three, two, one!" Oregano exclaimed as he then fired his pistol at Venny's.

A sudden clang was followed shortly after which Oregano expected to be the pistol he had shot, but much to his surprise it had been due to one of Michelle's chains spinning in a rapid circle that deflected the bullet off-course.

"Well bummer!" Oregano cried out.

"Not gonna be that easy for you 'Triple Six' we are both security guards at Skrullton Labs. We aren't to be taken for granted." Michelle spoke out.

Venny was currently in a cold sweat. He hadn't realized that Oregano was simply shooting at his gun, he figured he was shooting to kill so he saw his life begin to flash before his eye's.

"Thaaaaanks for the saaaave Michelle." Venny mumbled.

"Just get a hold of yourself Venny…" Michelle replied, but stopped worrying about him when she looked back up towards Oregano still sitting tall on the moa whispering something to the seagull on his head. The sight truly hurt her head, it was hard to take what she was seeing as something serious, but due to Oregano's reputation she was left conflicted on how she should handle herself.

Meanwhile Oregano was unzipping his backpack and looking for something inside. He had Polen looking over the scene for him reluctantly to keep an eye out for enemy movement, Nyree was ready to react at the drop of a hat, and Tompkins was ready for Oregano to explain the plan he told him he was needed for.

"Aha here we go. Bout time I found this." Oregano replied as he pulled out a bag with a very strong smell. "It's my bag of ground up cayenne pepper! Just like aunt Cayenne, I always love to add a hint of this to my meals, so I've always got some handy! But that's beside the point." He added.

After a few more gun shots and some exceptional dodging on Nyree's part, Oregano had finished explaining the plan to his animal pals and they were ready to strike back!

"And go!" Oregano shouted. He was giving the signal to both Tompkins and Nyree to move into action.

Tompkins took off flying overhead, he had flown off Oregano's noggin and it was truly a sight very uncommon to see. The heat of the moment was realized by Tompkins though so he knew he had to help out in whatever way he could.

Nyree on the other hand was now running as fast as she could towards Michelle and Venny. Oregano had his pistol drawn and was firing once again at Venny's gun. He wasn't expecting them to hit since Michelle had swatted them down earlier, but he needed them to worry about something instead of giving Nyree, Polen and himself their full attention as they ran by them.

The bullets all fell to the ground and Venny's pistol was unscathed once again. However after becoming pressed up with their backs to the wall on one side of them, Oregano and crew now had more room behind them to work with and they took full advantage of this. Oregano motioned for Nyree to run a long ways back and give them some breathing room.

He tapped the moa on the neck when they were a good distance away from the two strangers and then proceeded to unsling his riffle from off his back.

He quickly took aim at the two security guards from Skrullton Labs who were now running towards him, they were obviously tired of fooling around, and were moving at a much faster pace than earlier.

The time was ready for Oregano to try out his plan. His sights were ready and his cross-hair was aimed.

"Drop Tompkins!" He shouted.

Tompkins the fast flying seagull upon hearing this command dropped the bag of cayenne pepper directly above where Venny and Michelle were running. It was as if they had been doing this play for years, because with a sudden perfect firing of Oregano's rifle, the bag burst open and a mist of irritating pepper flakes filled the air around the two guards below.

Michelle and Venny were now cursing Oregano's name, coughing, hacking and rubbing their itchy eyes viciously.

"Now for that pistol I've been trying to shoot!" Oregano laughed. He wasn't used to be denied his target so many times when shooting, so he was getting a kick out of this little shindig.

Then with a second firing of his rifle, Oregano pierced the pistol out of Venny's hand and it flew down to the sandy street behind him with a crash. Michelle couldn't do her whirling chain defense with pepper particles all up in her eyes, so it had been a free shot for 'Triple Six Oregano'.

About that time Tompkins landed back on top of Oregano's head and received much applause for his swift moves!

"Alright Nyree! While they are still scratching their eyes let's go for a…" Oregano was cut off fast.

As he was beginning to plan out their next plan of action, a roaring metal chain flew through the air and landed with a hard hit right to his chest, the chain withdrew rapidly back to Michelle who had slung it, and the force of the hit sent Oregano toppling over and off of Nyree's back.

"Oyeeeeee!" Oregano hollered as he fell towards the ground beneath him. In midair he managed to pull Polen onto his chest so he wouldn't end up landing directly on him and he'd be safe.

Tompkins flew up in the air before impact was made with the ground, and Oregano landed hard on his back with a thud.

The right half of his shirt was now ripped from the chain cutting into him, he was bleeding a considerable amount near his shoulder, and now his lower back was folding up like an accordion in pain due to the impact from the fall.

None of them had seen the chain heading towards them this time. They were all too lax and relying a little too heavily on the cayenne pepper and that wasn't good news.

Polen, Tompkins and Nyree alike were all clustered around Oregano who was sprawled out on the ground looking like a big mess.

"Don't worry guys… I'm okay." Oregano responded to his pals, but his usual cheerful easy-going voice was not heard in this phrase much to the animal's dismay. His voice had a sound of serious pain running through it.

Polen scurried up to Oregano and was about to embrace him tightly when he suddenly noticed something shiny lying on the ground beside where Oregano had fallen.

Oregano noticed his koala's switch in attention to the ground beside him and was now looking at something he was not expecting to see. It was the tranquilizer dart that the marine girl Slurry had fired on The Cherry Maria earlier that day. He had forgotten that Tompkins had scooped down and gotten it.

"So you put this in my windbreaker aye Tompkins?" Oregano spoke as he reached over slowly, still lying down on the ground pitifully and picked it up.

The dart had an obvious dent from where the bullet had collided with it, but from the looks of it, and as far as Oregano could tell, the dart still seemed to have liquid inside and the syringe was still intact.

"I think this could be worth a chance…" Oregano muttered with a faint smile.

Meanwhile Michelle and Venny were walking towards the scene before them in complete joy and amazement. They were shocked that they had defeated the mighty 'Triple Six' Oregano. They were going to be famous now!

They stopped a few feet away from Oregano who by now had rolled over and was resting on his stomach.

Tompkins was showing respect by not sitting on his captains head in his current state and was instead positioned standing on the ground beside his head.

Nyree on the other hand was giving the approaching duo a menacing stare. She was ready to rip the two apart, but Oregano didn't want to risk her getting hurt by those sneaky chains so he had told her to hold back unless completely necessary.

Venny and Michelle were now gazing at Oregano slumped down on the ground before them with his two birds on either side of him.

"So the hotshot rookie that terrorizes Oion can only amount to this much huh?" Venny harshly spoke towards Oregano.

"That cheap trick spared you some time but didn't do you any good in the end!" He continued until he saw Oregano crack a smile.

"Well it left you without a gun." Oregano responded, the smile on his face growing bigger by the second.

Venny was outraged by this display. Not only was Oregano smiling as he talked to back to him, he wasn't even smiling at him. He was smiling at Michelle for reasons he was about to find out.

Michelle his partner was beginning to wobble about, and her legs eventually buckled causing her to fall hard to the ground and land on her face.

"Michelle! What did you…?" Venny screamed. But his answers were reveled when behind where Michelle had fallen stood a koala in 'cool' shades and a baseball cap posing like the hero he was with the tranquilizer dart still in his paw.

Polen had scurried up the houses on the side of the street and secretly ambushed the two Skrullton guards from behind, and then proceeded to inject the dart into Michelle's unsuspecting leg.

"Why you little pest!" Venny shouted at Polen. He was rearing back about to kick the koala for what he had done to Michelle.

But Oregano, at the sight of the man threatening his pal instantly reacted. "Nyree and Tompkins he's all yours!" He shouted.

Then in a flash Nyree had blitzed the scene at hand and drove her mighty beak crashing hard into Venny's head. She had been waiting to strike this whole time, but contained herself since Oregano wished her to stay safe and calm.

The impact sent Venny flying through the air and while still in midair flight, Tompkins added the finishing touches, even though Venny was already clearly knocked out. Tompkins flew down from the sky like an arrow and drove his beak into Venny's head as well.

"Excellent!" Oregano sighed as he gave thumbs up all around to his pals.

Polen came scurrying over to Oregano and gave him the loving embrace he was going to give him earlier, Tompkins flew over after he un-wedged his beak from Venny's skull, and Nyree walked over to the fallen Oregano and comforted him by nuzzling him with the side of her head.

"You guys are some great teammates! I couldn't have done it without ya!" Oregano smiled. He could feel the love and was so relieved that this whole ordeal was over.

But hey this kind of thing was bound to happen with his adventurous plans so he decided he might as well get used to it.

It wasn't long however that an unfamiliar female voice called out from behind him that shocked Oregano and gang completely off guard. They hadn't heard any noise or movement beforehand until the voice called out. "Thanks for the help, if you don't mind I'll take Michelle and Venny off your hands."

Oregano and crew all whipped around to look behind them and see where the voice was coming from and who it belonged to. Much to their surprise it belonged to a woman in a black hood with a dark scarf over her face.

"A black hood! Oregano muttered, clearly still in pain but still excited about the sight before him. "You wouldn't happen to be part of the Shedyed would you!? I'm looking for someone named Ameera." Oregano added.

The woman stared back at Oregano in complete silence. Her dark hazel eyes were mesmerizingly deep and were gazing at the rag-doll of a man also known as Oregano on the ground beneath her.

**A/N: Hey everyone! I can honestly say that with all the characters I now have going on in my story, that writing just seems to be a lot more fun!

Like always I really hope you enjoy this chapter!

Please feel free to comment as well! I truly appreciate your reviews and opinions!

Sycamore Isle has a lot left in store! **


	36. Sorus Chapter 4 Part 1

**The Man With the Golden Pants**

By: Grandmaster Briz

Solar rays gently reflected off the surface of the West Blue. It was a rather calm and bright day in this particular region of the great ocean that covered approximately a fourth of the world. The general populous of the various islands in the area felt the perks of the weather as fishermen reeled in their largest catches of the season and tourism brought large amounts of money to the beaches.

However, there was one island in the region whose residents did not get to enjoy the pleasant weather. For some odd, unknown reason this particular island was only graced with the gloomiest weather regardless of the surrounding climate. Billows of smoke rose from the numerous spires that jutted up from the Island. This island was almost entirely covered with the metropolis of Dixon City, a place where the skies were always dark and the people were always unhappy.

It was about to rain, for it was always about to rain in Dixon if it was not already. The people of Dixon who trudged around the city in their dull suits all passed each other their daily grimace as they grudgingly moved forward through their miserable lives. Upon sensing the coming of rain, the entire city brought out their umbrellas. It was quite an aesthetic site, reminiscent of a rainbow even, a rainbow of grey. It wasn't as if color was actually banned in the city, it was just that no one particularly saw the point to draw the eye's attention in such a nugatory manner.

No sooner were the heads of the various citizens of the city cover by a shroud of identical mass-produced umbrellas of four different grey tones when the pitter-patter of rain began to drench the exposed landscape. It was at this moment that a scream pierced the air and at this moment that Bowie Calder knew that he had a job to do. He quickly whipped out his dull grey lighter and lit a cigarette while he made his way towards the scream.

Careful to keep his umbrella over his cigarette, Calder took a quick shortcut through an alley way. Like everyone in the city, he was dully dressed. The middle-aged man wore a dark grey overcoat over a dark grey suit to go with his dark grey fedora that was tilted to the side. What could be seen of his hair was short and brown. Light stubble stretched across his cheeks, chin and right below his nose. His face always carried a stoic and serious expression that fit his native city.

There was no crowd when he reached the scene of the crime. There never was. Someone was always getting caught up in some conspiracy or owing too much to the wrong people and this is how they would end up. So why would Calder even bother being a detective then? It was because he was damn good at it. Calder pulled out the dullest baby Den Den Mushi of all time and began to speak. "We've got another one, Haynes," he said bluntly. "Bullet to the chest."

Calder's partner, Haynes, was a man who preferred to organize paperwork and view things from a distance rather than investigate the crimes directly. "Could you give me a description of the victim?" Haynes replied through his own Den Den Mushi.

"Average height, size and build. He has short brown hair…" Calder removed his cigarette so his voice could be heard clearer. "He basically looks like every other male in this city."

"Interesting, does he have an ID on him?" Haynes replied, not sounding interested at all.

Calder already had the man's wallet opened. "Way ahead of ya. His name is-" Calder was suddenly cut short by the blast of a pistol. "Hold on, looks like we have another one." Calder quickly moved down the street towards the spot where the sound originated.

"That's Villy Vinderquick. I always use to see him at Clondo's bar." Someone muttered at the sight of the corpse. Vinderquick had apparently been shot in the head and fell out of the window of a nearby office building. What was more important was the piece of evidence that was right next to his partially clenched hand, a recently fired flintlock pistol. "Suicide… but why?"

Calder took this moment to step forward and inspect the body closer. "Looks like someone just wants us to pass this off as another suicide."

"He was holding a gun and was shot in the temple right next to where his hand was, how is this not a suicide?"

Calder removed the cigarette from his mouth. "It just isn't," the detective bluntly stated. "Now where is this Clondo's place?"

**Several minutes later, at Clondo's Bar…**

"That man's pants seriously offend me," A man smoking in the corner of the room muttered while giving a man who was sitting at the far end of the bar a rather nasty glare.

"And seriously, who goes to a bar and orders orange juice?" the man's drinking buddy said with a look that one may give another if they had just related one's mother to a school of drunken and rabid krill.

The first man motioned to his friend "How about we show this extravagant bastard what we think about such… behavior in Dixon City?"

Bowie Calder took this moment to enter the building and slowly make his way up to the bartender.

"May I get you something to drink?" a Bartender with a slight beer gut and a well-trimmed brown beard asked, his dull grey fedora tilted slightly to the side.

"I rather have information," Calder replied, sliding several very dull grey coins over to the bartender.

"Information, eh?" The bartender lowered his voice. "If you want to know about the happenings of this ocean, I suggest you leave the island. Though you look like you are from around here." The bartender motioned to the man at the end of the bar. "Unlike that man, so you know about the Cartel's control of the newspapers. I am surprised he managed to even come to this island at all. I was sure all the docks were heavily guarded." The bartended lowered his voice and tilted his fedora even further. "Now if you want to learn about the Cartel's workings, I am afraid I can't help you there either, though for different reasons."

Calder blew out some smoke before responding. The bartender had used an awful lot of words to tell him absolutely nothing. It was as if he felt the need to give background information for the island to some invisible audience. "Relax, all I want to know is what you know about Villy Vinderquick. I hear he is a regular here."

The bartender leaned in, lowered his voice and tilted his fedora all even more than the previous two times. "I hope you recall the second thing I mentioned, about the Cartel's workings."

Calder slid over a few more dull grey coins that only functioned in the city. "Now I am even more interested."

More leaning, voice lowering and fedora tilting quickly ensued. "Fine, but it better not be our heads."

"Well, it certainly seems to have been Mr. Vinderquick's. I just examined his body. Most people are saying it was suicide, but I know better."

The bartender subtly motioned forward to the two men slowly approaching the far end of the bar to greet the city's "guest". After Calder took a brief look behind him, the bartender continued to speak "Those two were always harassing Vinderquick. Asking if he paid his tax, all of us working men in this district have to pay it, I am certain that you have a similar situation over in yours. Those two probably didn't do it, though. They are mere thugs who lack the finesse to pull off such an operation." A drop of sweat rolled down the man's brow. "I'm sorry, I can't say more."

Calder turned back towards the two thugs, only to learn that they apparently wouldn't be able to say more either, for one of them had just been sent three feet into the air by a frightening uppercut. The other quickly followed in his partner's wake by means of a well-deserved jab to the face.

"DAHAHAHAHAHA," the outsider laughed as proudly as one could possibly laugh. "It's going to take a lot more than two punks to stand up to me." The man took a step forward to reveal his entire form and Calder saw just the reason that the man was getting so many cold stares. This traveler's pants had an odd quality that seemed to reflect lights wherever it shone. This was a quality similar to that of foreign "golden treasures" that passed through the city from time to time. Calder could not lie; the golden pants were like a direct insult to the culture of the city. What was more was the man's untamed mane of long red hair. Red hair was a rare thing in the city, but this was completely out of hand.

"I was just about to interrogate those two for my murder investigation, you know?" Calder pointed out to the stranger as he approached the scene, being careful of the man's apparent instability.

The man simply gave Calder a savage grin before yanking out his swords and slicing his way through the wall of the bar.

"How… flashy," the detective remarked as he did his best to forget the whole ordeal and rummage through the coats of the two unconscious thugs. It was not long before he found a slip of paper containing orders to go to the western docks at 8:00 that night to help with some shipments. Bowie Calder may have lost one lead, but he had quickly recovered by stumbling onto something much bigger.

**Later that night, at the western docks…**

Night in Dixon City really wasn't very different at all from the day. All the shades of greys were just a tad darker or completely indistinguishable due to the absence of light. Really, the only major difference was that the chance of any random individual wandering the street being moderately involved in the Cartel increased from 12.5% to 56.4%. Of course, hard-nosed detective Bowie Calder was well aware of this and chose to stick to the shadows and avoid all eyes as he began to climb up the side of a building next to the docks. "Haynes, I have reached the rooftop you told me about. You were right, this place has a perfect view of the entire docks."

The sound of papers being shuffled could be heard through the Den Den Mushi. "Well of course," a rather pretentious voice responded. "Do you see any signs of the Cartel?"

"Not yet," Calder responded as he crouched down below the ledge to reduce his visibility, with only his head poking out. A fairly dim lamp on a pole gave off an ominous creaking sound as it was swung back and forth in the wind, constantly changing the area of visibility. It was on one of these swings that Calder caught his first glimpse of movement. There were people approaching.

Two men, dressed in what appeared to be a gray suit which may have had even the slightest hint of blue stepped into the light of the lamp and began to stand around idly with their hands in their pocket. One of the two pulled out a mini-Den Den Mushi "Total-Shoe-Throw reporting, we have reached the transaction location and are waiting for the signal from Zip-Tie-Wing-Ding" There was a muffled response from the other end of the snail and then silence.

The creaking of an old or poorly made set of wheels broke the silence several minutes later. A cart pushed by a darkly garbed individual emerged from the shadows. Calder took this moment to scout the nearby alleyways from the rooftop. "Haynes, it seems that some guards have been placed in all the nearby alleyways to oversee the transaction. It is going to be a challenge to separate one of the dealers for interrogation."

The darkly garbed figure reached down and removed a drape from the cart. After reaching his hand in, he removed one small bottle and held it out for the other two men to grab. "A sample" They said simply.

One of the two men grabbed the bottle while the other held out what looked like a cloth of some fashion. The first man unscrewed the bottle and poured a single drop onto the cloth. "Wow!" The man exclaimed in slightly hushed amazement. "The hue of this stuff is quite potent, I take it that you have the whole order for me to send up?"

"All the 'greens' and 'pinks'" The man lifted the cover on the cart a bit more before closing it again. "I am going to need to see the money."

Unfortunately, Bowie Calder had stopped listening near the beginning of the transaction and was slowly creeping up on one of the guards, from above. He had no choice but to systematically remove them until he could get to one of the dealers.

The detective was currently dangling from the ledge of a fire escape balcony above one of the guards. 'Here we go' Calder thought to himself while releasing his grip from the ledge. The guard could hear the soft thud behind him, but as soon as he turned around, a not-so-friendly fist was quick to meet the side of his head.

The sound of gun fire soon tore the air asunder. Calder was quick to role himself behind a dumpster. "Haynes, I don't know how they spotted me, but I am under fire! Is there any sewage systems passing through this alley for me to escape?"

A moment passed before Haynes's voice responded. "I don't see any way out from there, how did they manage to spot you? You have never had this issue before!"

"I don't know!" The detective grunted angrily. "It's a shame that they have such bad aim though, not a single bullet has ever hit near me." Calder observed out loud as he slowly began to realize that there may be more to this gunfight than he thought. Calder poked his head above the dumpster just in time for the dark-garbed man to be hit clean in the face by a flash of gold.

"DAHAHAHAHA, I DON'T EVEN KNOW WHY THIS FIGHT STARTED BUT I AM GOING TO END IT!" The shirtless, red-haired man with gold pants and a towel draped over his shoulders had returned to make things pointlessly difficult once more! This time he even brought his gorilla-like companion with him to help out.

That very same gorilla-like companion had just thrown one of the dealers like a javelin right into Calder's face.

**Several hours later, in a rundown apartment…**

Bowie Calder let out a massive sigh and slammed his head against his hands. "Damn this is getting frustrating…" The detective growled, his body's form slouched over the table of Haynes's apartment.

Haynes walked over to the table with a plate of lightly seasoned chicken and green beans with salt. "I don't know why you are so frustrated, you are acting like you didn't get a lead straight to the Cartel's hideout. The police have been looking for that for years." Haynes was a man of his mid-fifties with grey hair that was about a quarter of an inch longer than the accepted norm of Dixon City, square-framed glasses and facial hair that hadn't been shaved in two whole days. Hell, even the man's suit actually had a grey on slightly-darker-grey plaid pattern if one looked very closely. Haynes was a true rebel in a city with a strict code of blandness "Maybe you just need to eat, you seem to be very irritable."

Calder took a single bite of the chicken and cringed. He just could not understand why one would put that powdery "seasoning thing" on chicken. Why would someone ever want to change a food's original flavor?

"I am not changing the chicken's flavor, only adding to it." Haynes said as if reading Calder's mind. "Though change might be a good thing for this town."

Calder took another bite and found it more agreeable. He then let out a sigh of resignation "You know, you might be onto something here." Calder then thought of his most recent experience with the city's underworld "Though, it might need to happen over a long period of time. That rude man's pants just cross the line! What was that outsider even doing fighting the Cartel?"

"Who knows, maybe he has some deep and complex history with that lot." Haynes replied before moving onto a more important topic. "However, that Cartel member the Gorilla-like man threw at you was actually disoriented enough to tell me where the Cartel's main base was when I went to interrogate him."

Calder's eyes widened "Are you for real? Was that man really that high up to know such information?" The detective's hands fell onto the table in dramatized disbelief.

"Yes it seems that whatever these 'greens' and 'pinks' happen to be, they are very important to cartel leadership." The older man leaned over the table slightly and muttered a question with a strong sense of profoundness. "So what is it going to be, are you going to utilize this opportunity to bring the Cartel down for good?"

**Daw, outside the Cartel's headquarters…**

Calder did not expect things to turn out this way, at the very least he had expected to have figured out who murdered the man the previous day. 'What was his name? Billy Bendinglick?' The detective thought to himself, the case seemed too far removed from the present situation. "Ya know, you could have probably found out who the murderer was when you were interrogating the captive." Calder pointed out over the Den Den Mushi.

"Probably, the chance of finding out where the Cartel leaders are held up was just too tempting." There was an audible sigh "too bad, that guy is probably an island away by now. Being captured by us left him little choice but to flee the Cartel's reaches. By the way, are you at the hotel yet?"

Calder stopped walking "Yea… who would have thought that the leaders of a crime syndicate would operate out of such a fancy place?"

"Me." Haynes replied.

"Thanks for that." Calder took a deep breath and made sure his pistol was well hidden before approaching the building."

"Welcome to the Grand Grey Ghotel sir, do you have any luggage?" A bright-eyed bell girl enthusiastically greeted Calder.

Adding a 'G' to the word 'hotel' does not make it an example of clever alliteration, in fact the very idea of this pissed Calder off. "No" he responded simply as he brushed past the bell girl and entered the hotel.

"Welcome to the Grand Grey Ghotel, do you have a reservation sir?" An equally bright-eyed young man behind the desk said with the largest smile that he could muster. Calder simply ignored this kid and went straight for the elevator and attempted to press the button, but it seems a key was required. "I am sorry sir, but you need to have rented or purchased a room to have access to the elevator. You must have a reservation for me to authorize you. Otherwise, if you have an acquaintance who expects you here, I suggest calling them to come down here." The boy spoke these well-rehearsed lines while bouncing on his toes like his job was the greatest thing in the world, while holding and elevator key out to Calder to show him what they looked like.

Calder sulked his way over to the boy's desk, his fists clenched tightly. The boy's smile was still bright as ever within the last few moments of his perfect teeth. Several of these teeth could be acquired and sold at a profit after the following moments when detective Bowie Calder bunched him square in the mouth and grabbed the key. "Authorize this." Calder then placed the key into the hole beside the elevator and walked into the now-opened door.

The detective pressed the button for the top floor and slumped against the back wall of the elevator. "Damn, what the hell is wrong with me? Punching some teenaged kid in the face." Images of the outsider with the golden pants flashed through his mind. "That damn outsider is making me think illogically like him." He had to admit that the gold pants were beginning to grow on him after talking to Haynes about change in the city.

After several minutes a bell rang to signify reaching the 42nd and top floor of the building. He took a step out of the elevator and was confronted by a guard who was immediately pistol whipped and used as a human shield. The second guard froze when her unconscious companion was held up, unsure if he should shoot. This gave Calder the opportunity he needed to throw the man at the other guard, knocking her unconscious as well.

The detective took the next moment to look around. The area around the elevator was rather confined, the Cartel heads seemed to own the penthouse that spread across the entire floor aside from the elevator. Calder felt yet another flow through his body. "Screw this." He muttered in a way quite unlike his usual, composed self before shooting the lock and kicking the door open.

Inside the penthouse was like nothing he had even seen. In fact, it was so bright and filled with vibrant colors that it momentarily forced him to shut his eyes so that they could adjust. "Are our furnishings not to your liking Mr. Detective?" A very polite voice spoke. Calder slowly opened his eyes to see a butler dressed in a neon green suit with a cyan bowtie. The man also had a blue mustache that reached to his waste and a crown of balding pink hair.

Calder looked around; framed paintings covered the walls in all sorts of colors, both bright and dull. The color the walls themselves gradually shifted along the color spectrum, starting with violet at the door. The curtains were an iridescent purple that gave the room a brilliant glow while the carpet was silver which raised several questions of practicality in the detective's mind. Calder clenched his fists but did not attack the butler, instead he grabbed his hat and coat and put them on the intended racks next to the door. "Where are the leaders?"

The butler motioned for him to follow "Right this way sir, they are expecting you." The butler said politely before pivoting on the left heel of his orange shoes and briskly leading the detective out of the entrance way and into a room on the left.

Calder's tour through the penthouse revealed many more brightly colored and extravagant decorations and furniture. The two even passed a room filled with boxes. Upon closer examination, all the boxes had a color written on them such as 'Reds', 'Blues' and 'Greens'. The detective's stomach knotted up, all this color was a bit too much for someone who lived in Dixon City for their entire life.

The butler's voice suddenly brought Calder back into focus "We are almost there Mr. Detective. I should remind you two watch your tongue around the four leaders. You should not underestimate their influence." The butler added in a polite tone that did not sound the slightest bit sinister despite the message of the statement.

This made Bowie Calder come to a stop "Wait, I thought that there were only two leaders in the Cartel. Why did you say four?" The detective inquired. "Not that I would be going off of anything more than simple rumors, I might add."

The butler cleared his throat as he walked down a final hallway that seemed to indicate the two simply went in a big circle to get to this room. "There have been recent additions to our leadership." The brightly-dressed butler put his hand on the door handle. "Now enter, good sir."

Calder obeyed, though he found it odd that no one took his gun. He didn't usually think of crime bosses as people who were able to defend themselves well enough to allow an armed enemy into their meeting room. He took his first step across the threshold and was forced to squint. It was bright and not due to lighting. This room had all the bright colors in the rest of the penthouse, but seemed to radiate individually. From the glowing pink carpet to the luminous orange drapes, everything gave off this weird aura. Calder vomited. His sudden loss of Haynes's chicken however was not due to the poorly executed attempts at color matching, since the detective had barely ever seen a color in his life. Instead, it was due to just how alien this all was to him.

"Yo, who's this fool spewing all over our fancy carpet!?" A voice inquired. This particular voice belonged to a man sitting on a purple chair. This man was thin as bones who wore his maroon hair back like some sort of samurai. His eyebrows were strangely bushy on the outside ends. This man opted to not wear a shirt, but did decide to roll with long maroon samurai slack and boots. He had a katana leaning next to the chair.

A second man with silver hair swiveled his grey sofa chair away from the windows in the back of the room so that he could face Calder. "Teaches us to have guests!" The man chortled in a very proud manner. This man was average build and height; however, he had an extremely fat face and neck that made him look like he had a quadruple chin and extremely long eyelashes. This man chose to wear several golden rings around his arms and neck, though due to the thickness of the individual's neck, he often made choking sounds. He sported a bronze-colored tunic that was laced in the back for practicality of wearing as well as a bronze pair of tights that were also laced in the back(which Calder could thankfully not see). This lacing, most would hope, was also for practicality purposes.

A woman with very normal-looking body but a crooked neck and a mop of untamed black hair sat in the orange chair. She decided to toss aside the very idea of conventional clothing and instead wore a single shiny-cyan tube that stretched from ankles to neck which needs no further explanation. "Manners, Presto!" The woman snapped at the man in the grey chair.

This was when the final leader decided to pitch in. He was a chunky man with a mess of blonde hair and shaded, but round vision-glasses. He also wore a purple hat plumed with a yellow feather, a long sleeve purple and yellow dress shirt with silky purple shorts and a yellow pirate sash. "That's right, this is the guy we were expecting. The detective… man."

Before Calder could ask about why he was formally summoned and expected the first man spoke up again. "Yo detective, why do you gotta screw up all of our deals? I mean we had a great deal on a mountain of pinks before you attacked!" The man, despite talking rough, looked quite timid the entire time he spoke.

Calder let out a sigh, even in a penthouse all the way up on the 42nd floor of a hotel, he could not escape this 'golden-panted wanderer'. Trying his hardest not to burst into a fit of rage like he has been showing a tendency towards as of late, the detective stroked his stubble and began to speak "I know that looked like my doing, but causing such a raucous isn't my style."

This time Presto was the one to respond. "Oh? Then how about the charming little agent of ours from the front desk? You know, the one you politely punched in the face with your non-raucous-causing-hands."

Calder was hit with a wave of awkwardness and instinctively reached for his cigarettes only to remember that they were still in his coat. "Umm… I got caught up in the heat of the moment?" The typically level-headed detective stammered in response.

The crooked-necked tube woman smiled slyly "don't be shy now, we know you are playing hero. You are trying to bring the color back to the people." Upon closer inspection the woman was wearing a nametag that said 'Hello my name is Flume' on it. "It won't work though, the people are used to their dull lives. They are afraid of change!"

Calder raised his eyebrows at Flume's statement. He was now thoroughly confused. "What does color have to do with anything?"

The triple-chinned man's face turned beet-red. "What does it have to do with anything?" The mean seethed between his teeth. "COLOR IS EVERYTHING, BOY!"

Calder, still confused, looked to the chunkier guy. "The dyes… man."

Before Calder could ask what he meant, Flume whipped out a vial containing green liquid as well as a piece of white fabric. The lady screwed the cap off and poured a few drops onto the fabric. "The dyes!" She said holding up the fabric. "What do you think the Cartel does with its money and power? It acquires all the dyes being shipped here and allows those who deserve it to enjoy a life of creative aesthetic luxury." The woman pointed to several portraits of brightly dressed people behind her "It has been that way for generations!"

After seeing Calder's wide stare, the shirtless man spoke "I don't think that guy even knew."

The chunky man next weighed in next "Well, he knows the big secret now. I guess we got to get rid of him… man." He said with a sigh. "Hugh!" He called out "… man" he added.

The detective suddenly felt a hard, cylindrical object press against the back of his head. "Sorry, Mr. Detective." Came the familiar polite voice of the butler "I guess it is only right for me to give you a moment to say your last words."

Calder sighed some more as Flume and Presto drew pistols as well. There was no getting out of this. "All I wanted to know was who killed-" The worn-out man was cut off by a loud crash. Something or someone had just flown threw the window. Time stood still for a moment for the detective and he could make out every detail on the unknown object. His first thought was 'It's him!' followed closely by 'How the hell!?' Yet sure enough, there the man was, flying face first into the 42nd story of a hotel. His face was cut up from the window and blood was just beginning to pump out. In this moment just before landing, Bowie Calder could make out just how red his crazy eyes were and just how evil that grin was. In this moment before- THUMP!

The man had flown right into Presto and knocked him onto the floor. The man with the gold pants promptly stood up, dusted himself off, then got pissed again and threw Presto's grey chair out the other, unbroken window. "GET THIS SHIT OUT OF MY WAY!" He screamed.

The detective took the moment to sweep the butler off his feet and disarm him.

Flume simply starred for a moment before speaking. "Wh-who the h-hell are y-"

The man, however, was far too impatient for her to finish her question and kicked her in the side of her head. In the first instant, her neck straightened, assuming its proper form for the first time in her life. In the next instant the rest of the kick's force surged through her, causing both her and her chair to go cartwheeling through the wall. "QUIT STUTTERING BITCH! I AINT GOT TIME FOR THAT SHIT." The man with the brilliant pants next took a few steps back towards Calder so that he could clearly see the other two leaders.

"Sorus …man" the chunky man stated.

"Yo Sorus, how's it been?" added the other.

"LOOKING FOR YOUR USELESS ASSES!" Sorus roared in response.

"How'd you even get to this floor …man?"

"THE FUCKING RAGE KING THREW ME! HOW THE HELL ELSE DO YOU THINK I WOULD HAVE GOTTEN HERE!?" Calder looked to roof of the higher building next to them to see the same gorilla-like man who threw a Cartel member at him waving at the group. "Now let's get the hell out of here, it's time to set sail!" Sorus began to turn around only to feel his foot bump something. It was the vial of green dye that Flume had shown Calder. "What the hell is this?" The man asked as inspected it in his hand, but before anyone could answer, he tore off a piece of fabric from the demonstration and stuck it in the vial. "I'M LIGHTING THIS SHIT!" and light it he did. The wall bursted into flames as the thrown and lit vial collided with the wall. "Bout time something exploded, now let's go!"

The three then moved towards the exit, Sorus giving Calder a deadly stare as he passed him. "What are you looking at punk ass?" The man taunted prior to looking down at his pants to discover a spot of green dye. "RRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAGH" He roared while he ripped his now-tarnished gold pants off to reveal a second pair of identical flame-patterned gold pants.

Calder could not respond, he just remained silent as the three exited the penthouse and likely took the only elevator off the floor. At this point the fire had nearly reached him, he had to move. The detectives thoughts flashed to the boxes of dye in the nearby room, he had to move now. The detective quickly slumped helped the butler to his feet. "WE NEED TO GO!" He screamed, completely forgiving the man who had held a gun to his head only minutes ago.

The butler, Hugh, simply nodded before running to help the two remaining leaders to their feet. There was no time to recover the dyes, much to Presto and Flume's dismay. The only things that they were able to grab in the panic to get out were two lustrous rainbow pillows. Caldor snatched his coat and hat as they moved through the entrance and tore their way down the stairs. They had not gotten more than two stories down when a huge explosion indicated that the top floor had blown off and the fire had descended to the other floors.

Several minutes later, Calder found himself panting for breath outside the hotel with all of its residents who happened to be there in the morning. This was when he noticed that people were beginning to point and gasp, only not at the fire. The detective looked to the sky and pulled out a cigarette followed by a Den Den Mushi. "Hey Haynes…"

"Yea?" Responded a familiar voice.

"Do you see what I see?" Bowie Calder asked after blowing out some smoke.

"Yea… I guess change is coming after all."

"Yea…"

It began to rain, only the normal, depressing rain that plagued the city. For looming over Dixon City was a massive amalgamation of color, or a 'Rainbow Cloud' as it came to be known. This cloud was raining colors. First, people were hit with hit with pink followed in a couple minutes by purple. The rain continued to move its way around the color wheel and the people's dull grey clothes came to life. People were shocked at first, but that shock turned to amazement as they began to adjust their clothing so different parts would be hit with different colors. Amazingly, the dyes did not clash, they simply replaced. This caused hair colors to change by the minute. Calder closed his eyes and could hear the laughter of Dixon City for the first time in his entire life. The laughter of the place that would come to be known as 'The City of Pink Haired Fools'.

"How did this even happen?" Haynes's voice came through the snail.

"The Cartel dealt in dyes, that maniac made them all explode. I guess the vapors formed a raincloud." Calder's cigarette was now lime-green.

"Is that even possible?"

"It is in this world. I wonder if it is toxic."

"Not in this world."

**One week later…**

"So, you never did get back to back to that first murder you were investigating when you came upon the body of Villy Vinderquick." Haynes pointed out as he took a delicate sip of his coffee. The slightly above middle-aged man was sitting with his partner at one of Dixon City's many recently opened café's. The man had not shaved since several days before and now was quite famous for having the city's most unkempt tie-dye beard. His uncombed, medium length grey hair was not a particular shade of lilac with dots of green every couple of centimeters. For clothing, if that would be an appropriate term, Haynes sport I cyan and pink polka dotted tie that he had carefully tied around his head. He also replace his boring suit with a yellow turtle neck that had green stripes. Haynes also didn't bother with pants, but he did have some shiny silver underwear to go with his rainbow-striped tube socks.

Bowie Calder let out a sigh and removed his neon-orange cigarette from his mouth. "Yea, I looked back into that and my hunch was right. He took out a big life-insurance claim the day before. His bank account is quite wealthy nowadays." Bowie Calder, for the most part, was a much more conservative dresser since he at least made some attempt to match. His hair was now a shade of teal to go with his teal dress shirt, teal dress pants and teal dress shoes. Of course all of these items were completed with matching orange vertical stripes that ran down the entirety of the wearer's body.

"Wow, suicide? Most detective's would not bother with such a case and assume that the wife was responsible. That is truly the 'perfect crime'" Haynes replied after taking another drink of his coffee.

"Well I am not most detectives." Calder responded while he flipped through the pages of a newspaper after finishing his reading of the article describing the Cartel's arrest. "Turns out that 'Sorus' character is quite the famous pirate, just look at the bounty he has." Calder handed his partner the newspaper. "Doesn't change the fact that he saved this city though."

"That's true." Haynes replied as he grabbed the paper from Calder. "Looks like there was an issue with his bounty photo, I doubt he is happy with this."

Before Calder had a chance to reply, a woman with bright pink hair ran up to the detective duo, her face covered in tears. "You guys are detective right? You have to help me!"

Haynes turned to the woman "Yes we are, are you alright?"

"No, I am not!" The woman bawled. "I went to go and open my store this morning only to find out that all of my dyes were stolen!"

Calder dropped his finished cigarette into the ashtray on the center of their table and stood up. The detective did not speak at first, he simply grabbed his pants and ripped them off. Everyone in the café was forced to shield their eyes from all of the unexpected glare their eyes had to suffer. Calder was wearing the shiniest pair of golden flame-patterned pants that anyone had ever seen. "I am on the case ma'am!"

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><p>AN: Wow, it really has been a while, sorry about that, I hope you guys will still read this. Anyways, I have been quite busy as of late with my research, but it still is no excuse for taking so long to release a 3,500 word chapter. Of course it was closer to 7,000 words in the end, but that doesn't excuse the fact that I posted a 1,700 word rp the other night followed by a 1,200 word post. So, yea I deeply apologize(btw, if anyone wants to join a Tower of God RP pm me and if you don't read ToG, shame on you).

It is a bit bitter-sweet sweet to write my last Sorus chapter ever, but mostly sweet. Yea, I know it says part 1, but part two will focus entirely on the confrontation Appatus and the "Fat Monk". Oh, you didn't know? From now on Rose'ire Trinity (Author of Jolly Roger's and Seagull's of Justice) will be writing for Sorus so I can better keep up with the other author's in my writing. Also, I prefer Sorus as a side char. I just want to say that this was probably my favorite chapter that I have ever written and I hope you all enjoy it is well. 'Tis a shame it probably won't get many reviews thanks to my slow updating.

p.s. Age of the Four Seasons is now two years old and only five reviews away from 200! A big thanks goes to all of our readers for sticking through it!


	37. Oregano Chapter 4 Part 5

Disclaimer: We do not own One Piece in any way.

Oregano and the Secrets of Sycamore Isle! Part Five

By: peanutbutterlung (Whale)

[[Previously on Oregano - Recap]]

Oregano and crew have found themselves traveling to Sycamore Isle after encountering the marine duo of Commodore Nightbright and his assistant Lieutenant Slurry out at sea. Upon arriving in the port city of Ushmel on Sycamore Isle, Bo split off from Oregano, Polen and Tompkins in hopes of settling his earlier fight with Nightbright where he was embarrassed. Meanwhile Oregano and his pets explored around the city on their own. The residents of Ushmel were all either sick or nowhere to be found. Many have offered their bodies as test experiments to the shady research facility known as Skrullton Labs that has taken residence on their island in order to receive money. Skrullton Labs are also the company responsible for the drugs that were to be used to sabotage Bo in his fight.

After looking through the city Oregano comes upon the body of a fallen man out in the street. His name is Daveed and he is weak from the tests that he volunteered for in order to get money to help his family trapped in poverty. Daveed explained the situation of the island to Oregano about how his family all speculate that his sister Ameera has joined a rebel group organized to fight Skrullton Labs called the Shedyed. Oregano volunteers to try and find Ameera and along the way he encounters two security guards from Skrullton Labs and with the help of his new friend Nyree and giant moa bird and his pets he is able to defeat the two in battle.

After the battle a woman in an all-black outfit approaches him, the Shedyed are said to wear all black and this of course prompts Oregano to question the woman on the matter. Meanwhile Bo was off being tricked by a disturbing old man named Satchamo Jones who claimed to know the whereabouts of where Nightbright was on the island, but in reality he was simply using Bo as a form of entertainment. Bo soon figured this out and retaliated… That is where we last left off in the story.

[[End of Recap – Now On With the Story!]]

At the Scene with Oregano and the Mysterious Woman

Oregano's question about the Shedyed had caused this new woman who had appeared on the scene to go deftly silent in the matter of a second.

The woman was wearing an all-black 'ninja like' cloth suit. She had a black hood placed over her head, and covered her face with a darkly colored scarf so only her intense and captivating eyes were seen. She was carrying a black bag over her shoulder, and on her hips were a bound whip and a cylindrical metal baton strapped to a utility belt of sorts.

Oregano, who was still on the ground bleeding from his shoulder wound, and aching like nobody's business was wondering why this lady wasn't responding to his question. He wondered if she figured he was just some lame-o-tron or something, as he bled all over the ground. This thought hurt him deeply for Oregano knew just how vital a first impression could be.

"You're the first person I've seen wearing a dark hood, you've gotta be…" Oregano began to comment, hoping to get a response but he was quickly cut off.

"Sorry, I don't know anything about that… nor do I know anyone by that name…" The woman finally spoke up, interrupting Oregano's speech. Her voice was filled with waves of discomfort as she replied in an abrupt and choppy manner.

"As a simple citizen of Ushmel however, I would like to thank you for what you've done here by defeating Venny Kestridge and Michelle Flamel." The woman continued as she walked over closer to where Oregano was lying down at.

Her piercing eyes were studying the scene at hand as she drew nearer towards the fallen Oregano. The sight before her was peculiar to say the least, but what got to her the most was the presence of a moa inside the city. These birds were native to Sycamore Isle, but often avoided human contact whenever possible due to the birds typically having a rather timid nature and distrust towards humans.

Then looking over towards Polen in his 'cool' shades and baseball cap, along with Tompkins who by now had decided to fall over on the ground in order to imitate the wounded Oregano, she wondered what this uncanny assortment of oddballs really were. What she wondered most of all however, was what Oregano had just asked her about.

"Awwwww what!? You're telling me you don't know anything about them? I thought you would be able to help us for sure!" Oregano finally whined a delayed response as the lady approached him. Her claims of not knowing of Ameera or the Shedyed were causing Oregano much distress for he had gotten his hopes so high upon spotting her.

"Unfortunately no…" Was the woman's simple and blunt reply to his comment. She then reached inside a pocket in the bag she was carrying and pulled out a roll of bandages and a container of ointment.

"Here let me help bandage you up." The woman spoke as she knelt down towards Oregano on the ground.

"Ah thanks, I would really appreciate that!" Oregano replied with a smile. "I gotta get through all this and get back to searching - And the sooner the better cause Daveed is counting on me after all!"

The woman upon hearing this comment realized she had to drop the charade and get down to business.

"'Triple Six' Oregano! What do you have to do with my brother?!" the woman shouted.

Oregano, Polen, Tompkins and Nyree all looked up at the woman in shock due to her sudden outburst, each of their eyebrows rising towards the sky in unison. Their eyebrows were rising so high from surprise that it wasn't long before the brows made it into orbit. Not only did she pretty much admit to being Ameera just then, but she also revealed that she knew who Oregano was!

Now Back with the Altercation between Bo and Satchamo

"Heads up fool!" Bo roared as he quickly unleashed a massive jab towards Satchamo.

As Bo's fist blitzed the likes of Satchamo Jones, a deafening blast of wind surrounded the boxer's fist and could be heard over the entire island. It was clear Bo wasn't messing around anymore. Ever since being humiliated by Nightbright earlier that day, something inside him was driving him harder than ever.

Satchamo reacted just before contact was made and raised his arms up in front of him, cowering about as he began to emit from his body a thick protective wooden shell.

This shell was no match for Bo however, because he simply plowed through the wooden shield like a bulldozer, and landed the 'Sunday Punch' on Satchamo's wrinkly left cheek.

The result of this was Satchamo flying backwards at an incredible speed. He didn't stop soaring until he finally connected with a tree a good 30 meters behind him. Satchamo let out a blood curdling scream as he made impact with the tree and fell to the ground with a splat.

Blood was pouring out of his mouth and his left cheek was sunken in and purple from the sheer force of Bo's mighty punch.

"Didn't I hear you talking bug shit earlier about taking me out? Sheesh you ain't nothin' but a little bitch" Bo spat as he slowly approached the scene where he had sent Satchamo flying to.

"Weak shit Average Joes like you can't go toe to toe with me, I'm a damn professional you dig? See I'm looking for real strength, something you sure as hell ain't got." Bo jeered at the unsightly Satchamo that was on the ground before him in a pitiful bloody mess.

"Average Joes like you... shit don't even get me started. I can't even tell you how many big talking fools think they can dance in the ring." Bo's anger was like a scorching wind that hits you, and when it does it knocks the breath right out of ya. Throughout his career, especially in his rookie years he had to deal with fans and skeptics alike that wanted to try taking the mighty Bo Stockston down.

Bo shook off the memories of old before he got even more worked up and looked down at his fist that felt a little different than usual. What he saw were a couple wooden shards dangling off of his fingers and knuckles. They certainly hadn't penetrated his thick iron-like skin, it was more like they had adhered to his powerful fist after such a terrifying impact. He slowly plucked the large fragments off and began to eye down Satchamo.

"Let this be a lesson to you…" Bo continued until he saw Satchamo surprisingly rise up, lean backwards and sling his arms forward.

"Hernnnnnnn!" Satchamo cried out as dozens of long sharp wooden spears were sent rushing through the air from his arms towards Bo.

Bo let out a smirk as he proceeded to tighten his muscles before impact was made by the sharp wooden spikes against his body. "Shit, you must be trying to give me an infection or something with all these damn splinters." Bo jeered as the spears neared towards him.

The boxer's rock solid body provided a natural defense to these primitive like weapons that were being used in an incredibly desperate like fashion.

Each of the spears simply bounced off of Bo's tough skin and landed on the ground before his feet with a thud.

"How's that for interesting jackass?" Bo muttered. He was happy to crush the dreams of the man who had wasted so much of his time.

"He...Herern… How could?" Satchamo whispered. He was flabbergasted at the display before him.

It was one thing to hear rumors of Bo Stockston's strength and pass it off as that of just another high level fighter, but when seen up close, it was as if you were in a boxing ring in the pits of hell with a man of devilish strength and demeanor as your opponent. Satchamo realized too late just what a mistake he had made in challenging the great Bo Stockston.

"Compared to that fool Nightbright, looks like you got a piece of shit devil fruit, if that's even what's going on here. I'm not even sure what to believe anymore." Bo spoke towards Satchamo who was now seated back on the ground and propped up loosely on the tree behind him.

"Hernnn… the Toge-Toge no mi has served me well… up until now that is. Something interesting you will learn as you journey through the world looking for worthy opponents is that for fruit users, it all depends on the individual's use and experience with their fruit. Fruits of any kind can be used in various ways." Satchamo muttered. "As for Nightbright however… hernenerneree… His fruit is one of the most interesting of them all … and one of the most dangerous fruits I've ever heard of. Herenee… You better be careful with him Mr. Stockston."

Bo glared at the defeated man in front of him with eyes full of disgust. "Where is Skrullton Labs? Tell me the truth this time." Bo asked with anger rumbling in his voice. After being told that Nightbright's fruit was dangerous and that he should be careful around him, these words began fanning the flames of hatred within him, making them burn hotter than ever. How dare this pitiful sack of a man currently on the ground at his feet tell him how he should behave or what he should do. Bo was about to snap until he saw Satchamo finally motion a weak response with his hand.

Satchamo was smiling a weak smile as he raised his hand and pointed to the northern side of the island. "You're as interesting as ever Mr. Stockston…"

Bo looked towards where Satchamo was pointing and then turned back to him. "It took until now for you to speak clearly and not need to clear that damn throat of yours? Maybe you should quit lying so much, the truth seems to come out easier." Bo stated with an annoyed tone upon hearing Satchamo speak plainly for the very first time all day. He had calmed down rapidly now and his aggression was off of Satchamo and his attention was instead where he wanted it to be – On Nightbright.

Satchamo shook his head slowly and finally passed out and fell over onto his side.

Bo took a deep breath and exhaled forcefully. This little detour was finally over for him, Skrullton labs was what he had his sights on now, and as far as he was concerned, Nightbright better damn well be there and be ready for an ass-whoopin'!

Meanwhile in an Open Corridor Inside of Skrullton Labs

"Dr. Jotter! A marine vessel has just docked at our pier." A painfully slow and dopey voice called out into the open corridor. High ceilings did little help in this situation as they simply echoed the cringe worthy shout far beyond their already intolerable levels.

"Drat!" Was the sudden response to this racket by a man who had been peering down into a large window overlooking what appeared to be a lab room on a floor underneath him.

This man was Dr. Jotter and he looked to be a man in his mid-thirties. He was adorned in a simple lab-coat that was colored a faint yellowish tan. He sported brown khaki slacks underneath this coat and wore black dress shoes and a belt to match. His face was rather weasel -like and slim in appearance. With no apparent bone structure in his cheeks or jawline that could be seen with the naked eye. This man had an incredibly skinny head, and was often bullied growing up because of it. A rather rectangular nose protruded ever so slightly from his narrow face however, and on its bridge rested a pair of tinted gray spectacles. As for hair Dr. Jotter sported only a widow's peak. A rather unfortunate way of balding but hey, everyone is different right?

Turning his attention now away from the goings on of the floor beneath him, his stare met with a rather large oaf of a man that was looking at him with a bewildered expression.

The large man appeared to be around 7 foot and was very thick and burly. He wore an olive green handy man- suit. He had a rough head of curly hair and an unkempt beard to match. He looked to be a man you'd have to hold by the hand in all facets of life based on the ditzy face he seemed to always wear.

"Now then Ronald, what have I told you about shouting in the corridor? Or really just inside period for that matter…" Dr. Jotter murmured, annoyed and irritated at the insubordination before him.

"Sorry Dr. Jotter…" Was the beginning of Ronald's innocent and bleak reply on the matter, but he had no time to finish because Dr. Jotter promptly cut him off.

"No matter, it's about time that lazy marine buffoon got here." Dr. Jotter crossed his arms and began tapping his fingers in anticipation against his torso as he proceeded to speak. "Just go make yourself useful and sweep the floors somewhere."

"Dawww right away Dr. Jotter!" Was Ronald's reply as he then exited the corridor..

"Imbecile… I really must speak with President Yarboro about his employing of such pathetic idiots here." Dr. Jotter mumbled to himself as he watched Ronald leave the scene.

"Sheesh you ain't kidding Jotter." A new voice called out into the corridor. The owner of this voice had obviously been eavesdropping on the conversation that had just taken place.

"Dr. Russel, didn't your mother teach you it's impolite to eavesdrop?" Dr. Jotter stated firmly. He was obviously the type of guy you didn't want to flex with since every little thing seemed to set him off.

"Hey, hey now, sheesh I was simply passing through." Dr. Russel responded with a hint of satisfaction resonating in his voice after noticing how he had gotten under Jotter's skin.

Dr. Russel slowly approached with a slight grin spread across his face. Dr. Russel was a man of average build. He wore a similar get up to Dr. Jotter's, except that instead of wearing simple khaki slacks like his colleague, Dr. Jotter sported a pair of teal colored pants with orange-pink palm tree designs printed all over them.

Dr. Russel appeared to be a man in his late thirties, he had a slight tan complexion and noticeably aging wrinkles defined his cheeks and forehead. Most noticeable of all his features however was his light purple poofed up hair that extended from the base of his head a good foot in every direction. This hair-do was complemented splendidly with a dashing mustache resting with a slight curl above his upper lip as well.

"You know if it weren't for your research here you'd be in the in the same boat as that groveling handyman. To think that an intellect like yours would coincide with such a ridiculous persona… it's just preposterous to think about." Dr. Jotter mumbled wishing his colleague would leave him be.

Much to Dr. Jotter's dismay however, Dr. Russel simply huffed at his comments and proceeded to lean up against the wall behind him. "So Nightbright is coming up huh? Sheesh bout' time… Just about put us in jeopardy." Dr. Russel spoke. "Still can't believe that lethargic man fell for our ploy, must be too tired to pay attention. If the marines were to really find out what we are doing here we'd be in shit… I mean sheesh could you imagine?!"

Dr. Jotter clenched his eyes tightly. It really was a chore for him to speak with a man looking as ridiculous as Dr. Russel. Even seeing him every day never seemed to dull the annoyance of his colleagues presence. "Just a couple more visits and it will be off to the Grandline for Skrullton labs...We just can't afford to…" Dr. Jotter began to speak as he simultaneously flipped on a security camera hooked up to a den den mushi that was recording outside at the docks. What he saw on the camera however halted his speech entirely.

"Sheesh, not like you to stop mid-sentence like that Jotter. What's gotten into you?" Dr. Russel commented as he rose up off the wall he was leaning on and headed over to see the screen the now sweating Dr. Jotter was gazing into.

"He didn't come alone this time." They both mumbled after seeing Nightbright's marine underling Slurry by his side.

"We're not just dealing with a sleepy-headed marine... sheesh this could go to shit quick if we aren't careful." Dr. Russel moaned.

"Of course we will be careful! Like I don't know what is at stake here! Don't be so ignorant. This new marine he just had to bring with him… She can't find out what's going on here! She absolutely can't!" Dr. Jotter shouted. The stress of the matter was obviously getting to him, making him act in a brash and irritated manner.

Now Presently at the Skrullton Lab Docks

"Excuse me young lady allow me to carry that suitcase for you." A Skrullton henchman murmured to Slurry as he reached upward towards the now docked marine ship to receive the case she held in her possession.

Slurry blushed upon seeing the man offer his assistance but quickly gave a shake of her head. "Thanks but there will be no need for that." And with that she lept off the ship and landed on the Skrullton docking bay below her with grace.

The Skrullton Docks were a series of long steel piers decorated with large boxes and containers scattered at every end. Henchmen were all the while in a hurried panic, hustling around trying to clean or rearrange anything and everything that they could to make sure that nothing was out of order. Many of the henchmen had now been alerted of the fact that the usual incompetent surveyor Nightbright was being accompanied by an assistant. Murmurs and whispers filled the scene at the docks between groups of henchmen relaying messages to one another from the higher ups as they moved in great disarray along the docks.

"Nightbright san! Are you going to get off the ship?" Slurry shouted to her slumbering superior officer who was now happily napping on his actual ship with his many pillows and sheets galore. This was heaven to Nightbright compared to the cramped and uncomfortable rowboat he was on before.

"Aye… Slurry I'm just going to snooze a bit longer… I'll be grumpy for the rest of the day if I…" Nightbright somewhat responded to Slurry but somehow managed to fall asleep mid-sentence. After his brief altercation with Bo Stockston, the fact that he was forced to exert effort before his fifth nap of the day was likely taking its toll on the slumbering marine.

Slurry blushed in embarrassment for Nightbright's sake and her own after all the henchmen around the docks saw just how unprofessional Nightbright could be without his proper or in most cases improper amounts of sleep.

"Tsch!" Slurry spat at her current predicament. As it was now all responsibility had fallen on her shoulders to conduct the entire survey.

"Alright please escort me to the factory!" Slurry spoke out with a resolve that carried her spirit towards a level of determination. In her brief case she carried with her all the documents she would need. She was ready to finally be able to complete a mission without getting sidetracked by Nightbright's sleep schedule. The encounter with Oregano earlier that day was still fresh on her mind and she was ready to prove herself.

"Right this way ma'am." Was the reply of a large man who had suddenly appeared at the end of the dock Slurry had docked the ship. He had a very solid frame and was rather rectangular in appearance. His silhouette might be easily mistaken for a mattress standing up on one end. For his hair he sported a slicked wild olive-green mane. Around his jawline was a rather thick chinstrap beard to boot. He had very pronounced lips and under his large black eyes were prominently large cheek bones.

"I'm Blake Bishop, the head security officer here at Skrullton Labs, my apologies for not being able to greet you at your ship as you arrived, our usual staff is a little shorthanded at the moment and I needed to check in on things. I hope you understand." The large man spoke as Slurry walked up and approached him.

"Not to worry, I understand and am quite used to unexpected occurrences… I'm Lieutenant Slurry by the way. Now shall we proceed?" Slurry responded to the man.

"Certainly right this way Lieutenant … Oh and pardon if I forgot to mention this before, welcome to Skrullton Labs."

**A/N: Hey readers – Like always I hope you enjoy this chapter and hope to see some of your comments!**


	38. Sorus Chapter 4 Part 2

Recap: When we last saw Sorus, he and his gold pants were running amok in a town with no color or individuality. What was he doing there? Where was the rest of the crew aside from Marko, Vince and Voit? Why was he traveling on the ship of the spyral pirates? These are all questions you may be asking due to me not publishing a single Sorus chapter in a year and a half.

After pulling off a unprecendented atack on West Blue's infamous Callahan Prison, Sorus was "forced" to do battle with a powerful member of the Enforcer's Four named Alistir. (For those who do not remember, the Enforcer's Four are a composed of powerful individuals in different West Blue nations, they help the marines of the sea out in times of need). Sorus was quite wounded, but managed to come out on top and free the infamous 'Rage King" Rippa Voit. However, by the time the crew regrouped back at their ships, another member of the Enforcer's Four was approaching quickly! Due to Sorus's present condition, Appatus (Sorus's Navigator and right-hand man) decided to play decoy with the Burning Sun's Ship 'Bladed Fury' while the incapacitated Sorus made a getaway with their allies! This chapter shows what happened to Appatus and crew.

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><p><strong>Breaststroke to Victory!<strong>

Business was booming as usual at the world famous restaurant The Zylon Duck Teet. In fact, the fire rampaging across Oion City forced more people than usual into this part of the city and very few can resist the aroma that emitted from the restaurant. What exactly a zylon was and what sort of mutated duck had the mammillary glands to supply a teet no one really knew. However, that did not reduce The Zylon Duck Teet's customer base in the slightest.

A large man of around 10 feet tall was the sole inhabitant of the restaurant's kitchen. How he managed to reach the counter top was anyone's guess since his belly extended outwards a bit further than his arm-span. Sicilian Copen was a master chef, a five time breast stroke champion, a fierce martial artist, the king of funky dancing and the fattest man in all of Oion city. The citizens of the West Blue typically refer to Copen as the "Fat Monk" despite Copen possessing no monk qualities other than his ability to fight. Copen wore a pair of black, impossible to button pants that were unnecessarily held up with blue and white suspenders. He wore a purple and white striped unbuttoned shirt over a t-shirt that came down to just above his belly button. Due to the other shirt covering some of the letters, his t-shirt appeared to say "ocom" which many believed to be part of the word "locomotion" after one of his signature dance moves. They couldn't have been more wrong. The shirt actually said "cocomat" which to most etymologists in the region has been identified as the exact opposite of locomotion. Copen was a clever man to hide the name of his super-secret ultimate dance move in such plain site. No one would ever suspect the sinister truth.

Like any true chef, the man possessed a thin, curly goatee that continued up to both edges of his upper lip without ever forming a true mustache. His eyes were veiled behind a small pair of round, black shades and his black hair was covered by a purple beanie.

The "fat monk" handled his knife with precision that surpassed most swordsmen as he carefully sliced some onions to go with his famous pork roast and threw them in the mix. He never had a chance to finish the dish before a rather bruised marine entered the room. The marine had bleach-blonde hair and wore his cap backwards, he was currently rather bruised up from being punched in the back of the head by the famous Bo Stockston just a few hours before. "Fat monk, Sicilian Copen?" The marine addressed the multitalented member of the enforcer's four. "I am Chief Petty Officer Avey of Marine Branch 119, I have come to enlist your aid on a mis-" The badly bruised marine never had a chance to finish his sentence before a succulent piece of pork roast was flung into his mouth.

"So what do you think?" Copen inquired while he tugged his wispy goatee.

An expression of pure ecstasy shot across the young marine's face as his chewed the roast. "That was the greatest roast I have ever had."

Copen smiled and began to shed many a tear, he loved it when his children were praised so. After several minutes of sobbing into his designated handkerchief for that specific situation (cooking compliments), the multitalented chef turned back to Avey. "Ah, I seem to have strayed us from the issue at hand once more. You need my assistance? Is it that Oregano demon I have been hearing so much about?"

Avey rubbed the back of his head and lamented on the recent past. _I really wanna get some payback on that no good liar, but I guess I deserved it for falling for a fake name like "Dave Davids". _Avey stared intensely into Copen's shades while he seethed before realizing how weird he must look. "Oh sorry sir, what did you ask?"

At some point while repeating his statement, he managed to toss another piece of food into Avey's mouth without him even seeing the morsel.

Avey made sure to stand strong at the mention of Oregano's name this time around. "Our target is a different demon entirely, some pirate named Sorus launched an all-out jailbreak on Callahan Prison about an hour ago. 'Royal Assassin' is already there and should be able to quell the rebellion but I am to bring you over there as a safety net in case they attempt to escape by sea."

**A few hours later, at sea**

The ocean surged and lurched as the mid-sized marine battle ship was tossed about the endless sea. On the ship, marines were frantically scurrying about the deck to keep the ship up right while a trio consisting of a man, a woman and a monkey all wearing chef hats played a sick beat using pots and pans. "Ahhh" A marine groaned, he was trying to scoop some water off the deck but a sudden cramp in his gut inhibited him from reaching his goal. Before he could guess the source of the sudden cramping, yet another hunk of delicious fudge slid into his mouth. The marine just could not understand how Copen could aim his desserts, help steer the ship, cook and pull off some of the raddest dance moves ever conceived all at the same time.

Another chunk of fudge, one spoonful of tiramisu, a piece of red velvet cake and a spoonful of chocolate mousse all expertly flew from the multitalented man's hands at a speed quicker than the eye could detect as he slid across the deck on his belly. Copen followed up by flipping onto his feet right next to the wheel in time to briefly steer on beat with his right foot prior to ending his routine with one more flip and a star pose finisher.

The marines of the ship all roared in a combination of applause and gasps of pain from cramps. Cramps that were most likely originating from the copious amounts of sugary foods they were unwillingly ingesting as they performed strenuous physical activities. "We should be reaching Maroon Island shortly!" The ship's navigator announced only to be cut off by more cheering and a chocolate turtle to the mouth.

The darkness of the night prevented even the outline of the prison-island from being visible until the marine ship was within firing distance. "Concentrate fire at the docks boys, it seems that all friendlies are incapacitated in the inner levels." Copen gave a styling order while spinning on the toes of his right foot.

**Several minutes later aboard the Bladed Fury…**

Appatus took a moment while the sails of the ship began to take over for the furious rowing of the heavily staffed but bruised crew and blew a couple of smoke rings. "With any luck…" Appatus began in the calm, intelligent voice that was characteristic of him. However, in this particular instance, there was no chance that the crew would actually manage to hear him.

The large man named Lugh with a scraggly mess of a black beard who had attempted to throw Marko and Vince overboard at the start of the mission took this chance to honor his captain's spirit. "YER ACTIN' CAPTAIN IS SAYING SHIT ABOUT LUCK!" Lugh screamed in a voice so loud that Appatus was a bit worried that the attacking marine ship would hear the outburst. Of course, Appatus was not capable of feeling worried or stressed, but if he was, this would be a moment for such emotions to arise.

There were several moments of silence since Appatus had to do the whole smoke ring routine again to drag out the suspense, but he would never admit that. "Thank you, Lugh. Now as I was saying…" Appatus took another break for smoking his pipe "With any luck, the marines should follow us assuming that Sorus would be on his own ship. Should that occur, I will need you all to follow my orders closely." The blond-grey goateed Appatus who vaguely resembled a washed up artist narrowed his eyes to cast a much more intense gaze upon the crew. "Should that not happen and they follow the ship our captain is really on…" There was an intense pipe-smoking break that allowed beads of sweat to flow down the necks of every single other person aboard the ship. "I will need you all to follow my orders closely."

The tension aboard theBladed Fury was at dangerous levels at the moment. However, everyone was completely focused on their individual tasks despite knowing of the stress. Despite knowing how pressed they were.

**Back aboard the marine vessel…**

Copen's ears perked up, or at least they would have if he were a dog. Since the rather large man had no more canine traits than the average human, he merely just narrowed his eyes knowingly upon hearing the shouted words. Copen had heard them and a look around the deck told him that Avey and a few others had heard the portions of a shouted statement as well. Since Avey knew Copen was the 'Distantly Shouted Partial Statement Interpreting' champion of the West Blue for 3 of the past 5 years, he gave the 'Fat Monk' a nod of approval.

Copen cleared his throat and to speak "As some of you may have heard, a man aboard the enemy vessel foolishly seems to have revealed part of their plan to us. From the statement '…shit…luck…' we can deduce that these crude-mouthed ruffians are trying to use luck to some degree to ensure their captain's escape. Since this was shouted, they likely are hoping we overhear this and assume that we are going after the wrong ship. However, many pirates are crafty folk and are not above the old triple-cross maneuver by tricking us through trying to trick us. But it is all just a trick! However, to avoid the old quadruple-cross barrage where they trick us by us thinking they are tricking us through trying to trick us, we must stay vigilant and send a secondary team covertly via life boats to follow the second ship under cover of darkness."

Avey gave Copen a salute, "Roger that sir, I will lead that team."

Copen gave Avey a nod "Sounds groovy to me, use a den den mushi to feed updates of the ship's location to Bleucubber. 'Only engage them if you get it cleared by him, your team will lack a means to engage in naval combat.

Already into character, Avey gave the 'Fat Monk' a very covert nod of approval, Avey was sure that he had heard about Copen winning some sort of big nod detecting competition so he had faith in the man. With the subtlety of an invisible antelope, Avey snuck a squad of ten stealthy marines onto two lifeboats. Copen could barely here the watercrafts hit the water moments later but knew it was time to kick the chase into high gear, whatever that meant on a wind-powered vessel.

**Several minutes later...**

Bumpy waves did little to impede the intense chase that played out before them. Experts often attribute this to the waves in question measuring only a few centimeters to the crest. In other words, the sea was absurdly calm.

The large marine vessel was closing in on the Bladed Fury at an alarming rate. Sicilian Copen stood at the bow of the ship and watched the nearby pirate vessel turn perpendicular to his approach. The esteemed Enforcer's Four member prepared to warn the crew for cannon impact before realizing that the pirates had the opposite intention. They were inviting the marines to board them.

The crew below anxiously awaited below, expecting to launch themselves into full on combat. Copen returned to the deck and rounded up a group to remain behind on the ship while he led a squad against the surely prepared pirates.

Appatus removed the pipe from his mouth and blew some smoke rings in front of him. A rather large man was in front of him and if he was not mistaken, this was 'Fat Monk' of the Enforcer's Four. He was really hoping not to have to face a member of that prestigious organization but it could not be helped. The interim captain looked to his sides, Lugh was screaming at the top of his lungs despite not being within striking range of any marines due to the ship's cramped nature. Instead he looked like an angry father mad at everyone cutting in line while he is trying to purchase his son's birthday present.

Of course, Lugh had no son, he smelled far too strongly of rotten apricot. In fact, several doctors have cited this as the primary reason Lugh would never get a mate.

Appatus made quick mental notes on the rest of the crew around him and noticed that Antil, Ope, Trapper and several other pirates were nowhere to be seen. Appatus looked back at Copen who was grinning widely. Appatus blew two more smoke rings before suddenly lunging forward at his opponent.

"Aho! I don't see Sorus's reported purple garb, it was the sextuple cross after all! Though, I suppose the capture of Appatus 'The Gazelle' was also part of our mission "Copen raised up his right arm to block while Appatus struck. The navigator was not looking to hit the 'Fat Monk' anyways and graciously grabbed the arm so he could change direction and kick the two marines beside Copen, freeing the pirates beside him so they may move on to other marines.

Appatus landed on his feet facing back towards Copen, hoping to do the same to the other side. Perhaps the navigator underestimated his opponent, because by the time he looked towards the 'Fat Monk' he had already caught the famed 'Triple Spin Elbow Maneuver' alongside his jaw, causing Appatus's favorite hat to fall into the deck.

"EEEEEEEEEYOW!" Copen shrieked as he followed up on his attack with a kick to the pirate's back.

Appatus flew forward a few feet and grimaced through the blood. At least Copen had kicked him in the right direction. Appatus pulled off a quick front handspring shortly before his face hit the floor. The moment his feet hit the deck, Appatus struck forward uncrossing and extending his arms at inhuman speeds with his signature attack 'Bushwillow Slicer'.

Three more marines promptly fell to the deck, bleeding. "Oho!" Copen exclaimed "So your martial arts can cut flesh, wanna test it out against me?" The acclaimed fighter let out with a laugh. "Don't think I don't see you helping your men overpower my crew." Copen nimbly head-butted one of the newly acquired pirates from the prison into the ocean. "You may be skilled but I am not sure if you and all your men on this deck combined could get me. Please surrender so there may be no more bloodshed."

Appatus took a few seconds to blow some smoke rings before responding. He looked to either side and saw that his men had pushed forward to the port side of the ship where the marines had boarded from. A distinct bullfrog croak sounded. "Perhaps..." Was all he said, despite that not being a valid answer to Copen's proposal. '_Perhaps I should invest in a seagull call, since that is actually realistic at sea.' _

Appatus spread his fingers and focused his life-energy into his nails in preparation for 'Tomboti Barrage'. Copen frowned at this and jumped head first. There were several distinct splashing sounds all around the ship while Copen fell two meters short, landing on his stomach. His gut quickly transferred that energy downwards, causing that portion of the deck to shatter as Copen was propelled upwards. Copen landed on his butt beside Appatus, giving the navigator barely enough time to face him before Copen bounced up and kicked Appatus in the stomach with both legs. The interim captain was instantly launched into the marine ship, allowing Copen a chance to land on his head and spin around flashily for a few moments.

By the time Sicilian Copen was back on his feet, he saw that he might not have won after all. The pirates had stolen their ship and it was already moving away. He could see several rope ladders now running down the side of his ship with pirates climbing up them. _'That splashing I heard must have been them jumping overboard. Kicking Appatus aboard only helped them. However, why would they think they could escape me at this distance?' _Copen got his answer in the form of a smell that his experience as a chef had him knowing too well. "EVERYBODY, GET INTO THE SEA! THE SHIP IS GOING TO BLOW!" the marines that had not already been knocked into the ocean during the fight quickly grabbed the wounded and jumped into the extensive abyss beneath them. Copen deftly grabbed a sword from the deck and cut the two lifeboats free before jumping off himself.

There was a brief flash of light and a quick rush of wind before a loud boom. Ocean water rushed over Copen's head, but he had done this before and remained calm. This wasn't a particularly huge explosion, but it was definitely enough to seek the already old and damaged Bladed Fury. He could hear cries for help from the various marines struggling to remain afloat. Copen needed to prioritize and choose between the mission and the lives of his men.

Obviously he chose the latter and used his famed breaststroke to round up the sailors who were unable to make it to the lifeboats on their own. Once aboard the boats himself, Copen rummaged through the supplies provided aboard. After getting the two lanterns and navigational equipment ready, the 'Fat Monk' pointed in the direction of Callahan Prison. "Go back to the prison, rescue teams should be there shortly anyways. You can report that Avey is covertly pursuing our primary target."

"But what will you be doing Mr. Copen?" A weathered old marine who hates the word 'sir' pondered.

"I will be pursuing Appatus with my full ocean press."

Of course, all the marines on the ship thought immediately of Copen's full-court press. A common tactic of the All-West Blue Basketball team's leading defensive player, Sicilian Copen. Copen would press the other team so hard all by himself that they would cry rivers from being pressed so hard and beg for him to take the ball. Even the mind of a pro athlete cannot handle being pressed like that. In fact, Copen and his team ended up winning the world championship at Marie Jois and were prepared to represent the world in the interstellar tournament before learning that such a tournament never existed. All the other planets were probably just way too pressed to represent.

There was a splash and Copen was breast-stroking away, fully prepared to get all up in the fleeing ship's grill.

* * *

><p>AN: Sorry for the long wait, I have no excuses. If you were wondering about Copen's resaurant name, I had a dream last summer where zylon duck teet was quite the delicacy. I even woke up saying it! In a sudden surge of imaginative power, I was finally inspired to write this chapter for you all... over the course of about six months. Things have been a bit different since graduating college, but now I feel like I am in a position where I may write more regularly. If you like this chapter or just missed us, please do not forget to review and favorite us!

~GMB


	39. Blackroot Pirates Chapter 4 Part 1

Disclaimer: We do not own One Piece in anyway.

_Medieval Castle on the Mountain_

The winds were blowing fiercely as the waves crashed against the side of the boat. The small window that usually allowed for sunlight was showing the gray clouds in the sky. Both of the boat's occupants sat inside the cabin quietly... well as quiet as possible with two demonic weapons in the same room. Raiein was sitting at the table with his cleaning gear laid out. The two weapons were for once silent. Raiein carefully cleaned the blades of the left over blood. Kaiyou was currently laying on the bed, writing into the little blackish-blue book. The sound of rain hitting the walls was sort of comforting and relaxing. Myoujou rattled against Raiein's hand.

"What, Myoujou?" Raiein stated quietly as he wiped the cleaning solution over the blade. Kaiyou glanced up from her writing and tilted her head in question. Raiein merely shrugged and glanced at his sword. "Myoujou."

"This next island, do you think there are any demons on it?" Myoujou questioned quietly. Raiein blinked and sighed while leaning back into his chair.

"Myoujou, will there be a day when you don't ask about an island and demons?" Raiein inquired quietly. Kishin sat quietly on the tabletop.

"Nope, if I did that would I be Myoujou?" Myoujou replied. Raiein rubbed his temple with a sigh. Kaiyou giggled from her spot on the bed.

"Kaiyou, what's so funny?" Raiein questioned tiredly. Kaiyou closed her book and sat up.

"Sorry, Raiein but watching you guys interact all the time is like watching a show. It's entertaining." Kaiyou responded with a small smile. Raiein closed his eyes for a brief moment. Kaiyou glanced out the window and the smile faded. "Raiein, why were they after us? What did we do?" Raiein's eyes snapped opened and he studied Kaiyou carefully. Her voice was sad again. He sighed and sheathed Myoujou back into his sheath. Raiein put the sword on the table next to Kishin and stood up. Raiein walked over to the bed and sat down next to her. He leaned his back against the wall.

"What brought those questions up all of a sudden? Is it the weather being gloomy outside?" Raiein questioned softly. Myoujou and Kishin perked up in interest. Raiein glanced at Kaiyou as she curled up into a ball on the bed next to him. "Kaiyou?" Raiein ran a hand through his short hair. "It's most likely our past maybe or our parents." Silence engulfed the cabin. Raiein felt Myoujou shift uncomfortably where he was sitting. Kaiyou peered up at him. Her golden eyes stared at him. "What happened on that island, Kaiyou? You never did explain what you saw. Not to mention you did faint after hearing that you were the Reaper of Morana."

"Our parents died because of me... your father is dead because of me." Kaiyou whispered under her breath while curling tighter into a ball. Raiein took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Raiein put a hand on her head and ruffled her hair.

"It's the past, Kaiyou. You didn't kill him. It was his duty and choice. We couldn't have swayed him even if we tried. He's a stubborn man from what I remembered. Our duty is to make sure that they didn't die in vain. It was his decision to protect you and most likely a vow to someone else. They were pirates and they knew what they were doing." Raiein stated softly. "Kaiyou?" Raiein glanced down at her and smiled softly. "Geez, listen when someone's talking to you." Raiein stood up slowly and draped a blanket over her. Raiein cleaned up his cleaning supplies before strapping his weapons on and putting on a raincoat. Raiein took one glance back at Kaiyou before stepping outside into the rain. The rain assaulted heavily. Myoujou and Kishin both shuttered at the pressure. Raiein merely took out a telescope and studied the darkened horizon.

"Raiein, do you see the island anywhere?" Kishin stated loud enough to be heard over the rain. "If we're not careful we could be knocked off course."

"We're fine, Kishin. We're still heading in the right direction. I'm no navigator but I know that's the island just over there. We'll reach it in a few hours." Raiein brought the telescope down and leaned against the cabin wall. Raiein put the telescope back into its pocket and brought a hand to his injured arm. Raiein tightened his hold on his arm and slid down. "Shit..."

_**Loki, Maple Island – After they departed**_

The city was in a state of panic. The citizens were running home after the display of violence. Nero and Lyall stalked the streets quietly heading toward the mayor's office. When they arrived, the office lights were off, Nero pulled out his lockpicks and pick locked the door.

"Who would have thought that the Hero of Eydis knows how to pick locks?" Lyall stated telepathically. Nero smirked as the lock clicked.

"We're in." Nero replied. Nero walked inside and locked the door behind him. Lyall sniffed around the room. Nero walked quickly toward the file cabinets. He pulled out a small box and opened it. Taking out the supplies, he quickly inserted the wax into the key hole making a copy. He pulled it out and smiled. "Perfect, let's see if it actually works." Nero quickly hardened the wax before putting it inside and turning it. The cabinet opened and he quietly shuffled through the papers. His hand hit a box and he frowned. Nero pulled the box out and opened the lid. "Lyall come over here for a second." Lyall walked over and glanced at the content as Nero showed it. "What is it?"

"Wanted posters... can you lay them out?" Lyall inquired. Nero laid them out and stood back. Lyall took a glance at it. "These are wanted posters for the Spyro Pirates. Two of them have huge x's on them. I'm guessing those were Raiein and Kaiyou's parents. Wait..." Nero blinked. "There's this weird looking chart..." Lyall and Nero both froze at a sudden sound of the window opening.

"Well, I knew I should have expected something, but you two were definitely not what I was expecting at all." Nero and Lyall relaxed at the familiar voice.

"Ethelinda?" Nero questioned with curiosity. "What are you doing here?"

"Stealing shit, why?" Ethelinda inquired with a smile. Nero shrugged and glanced down at the stuff that he laid out. "What's that?"

"Your wanted poster I think, plus a few other things." Nero replied. Nero felt Ethelinda walk over to take a look. "Lyall mentioned a chart thing, but since I can't see at all I can't really interpret it." Ethelinda picked up her wanted poster.

"Well that's a very sexy photo of me." Ethelinda put it back down and glanced at the other wanted posters. Her eyes stopped on Lancer's and Reigh's. "Fuck those two sometimes." Ethelinda muttered under her breath. Nero stood with his eye closed. Lyall was back to sniffing around. "Oh so this is the chart thing." Ethelinda studied it and sighed softly. "Nero what was your last name again?"

"Rainier, why do you ask?" Nero questioned with a straight face. Lyall stopped at the mayor's desk.

"Was your mother's name Lancia by any chance?" Ethelinda inquired softly. Nero nodded slowly. "Shit, no wonder the mayor's assistant wanted you dead."

"Excuse me? What does my mother have to do with any of this?"

"Your mother was a friend of ours. Fuck, no wonder I thought your name was familiar. Damn, this chart has all of the Spyro Pirates acquaintances on it. I don't know how they got it or who gave it to them but it's no wonder we were found out so easily. God damn it!" Ethelinda punched the couch in frustration. Nero blinked in surprise. Lyall glanced over at the two of them.

"You knew my mother... she never... mentioned you guys at all..." Nero whispered. Ethelinda took a deep breath and let it out.

"We made her promise us that she wouldn't try to get herself into danger because of us. I need to call Silvanus and tell him." Nero's left eye widened.

"Lucea... I have to go." Nero stated quickly. Lyall came over to him.

"She's your sister?" Ethelinda stated calmly. Nero nodded. "Then go, once you make sure she's okay come find me. I don't think you and your sister are going to be safe here anymore." Nero ran over to the window and stopped. "Stop hesitating, go. I'll make sure this building burns to the ground." Nero nodded in thanks before jumping out with Lyall following behind him. Ethelinda glanced at the wanted posters again. "We fucked up." Ethelinda stuffed the papers back into the box and finished looking for valuables. She broke the table and pulled out more papers concerning the Reaper of Morana and Spyro Pirates. She stuffed them into her bag and lit the building up in flames before she disappeared. Nero managed to leave the city without anyone knowing and ran quickly toward the place he called home. Lyall was running next to him. The two of them traveled swiftly in silence. After a few minutes, the two of them came to a stop and stared at the little house. Nero slid down the hill. Nero opened the door quickly.

"Lucea! Lucea where are you?" Nero yelled while searching for her presence. "Lucea! Answer me!" Nero ran through the house, a bubbling fear in the pit of his stomach. Lyall howled loud enough for Nero to run toward her. Nero slid to a stop next to her. Nero froze at the sensation that ran down his spine. "Lucea..." Nero ran over to her and picked her up. Her silvery-purple hair was out of its usual ponytail. He felt her moan softly. "Lucea, come on." Her amethyst eyes opened slowly. Nero let out a breath of relief when she spoke.

"Nero...? I..." She whispered weakly. Nero shook his head.

"Sorry, I'm so sorry. I should have come home sooner to make sure. Can you stand?" Nero inquired softly. She smiled and nodded.

"I just need to get my breath back that's all." Lucea stated calmly while standing up slowly. Nero stood next to her just in case. "What happened?"

"I'll tell you, but you need to pack everything that you want to keep with you. I'm afraid that something from mother's past is coming to haunt us. I'll promise I'll explain but we need to go somewhere safer first." Nero stated a bit calmer. Lucea nodded and kissed him on the cheek.

"I'm happy that you're alright, brother." Lucea stated softly before running off to pack. Nero leaned against the table and sighed tiredly. Lyall nudged his side worryingly.

"I'm alright, Lyall. This is just a lot to take in for once and I'm at a loss on how to handle it."

"You should go and pack some of your belongings too, Nero. If this might be the last time you'll ever be here." Lyall stated telepathically. Nero nodded and walked off. Lyall laid her head down on her paws and relaxed for a bit. After a good solid ten minutes both of the Rainiers came back into the room. Lucea had a bag packed with her clothes and sentimental valued items. Nero also had a bag with most likely the same type of items. Lucea went over to the kitchen cabinet and opened a secret compartment and pulled out a jar full of berry. Nero smiled softly as she put it inside her bag. Nero kicked an empty wall and it opened to reveal bullets and knives. He threw a sheathed dagger over to his sister who caught it and attached it to her belt. He pulled out a gun and handed it to her. Nero took the boxes of bullets and stuffed them into his bag.

"Nero, I feel like we're going to war. Do you have to remain silent right now?" Lucea questioned softly as she packed another bag worth of food and supplies. Lyall glanced at them with her eyes. "Okay than just tell me about your friend that you brought home."

"That's Ylva Lyall, you know what species she is." Nero stated calmly. Lucea blinked and glanced at Lyall again carefully.

"My goodness! It is one, Nero!" Lucea stated happily as she hugged Lyall. Lyall blinked in surprise. Nero smiled gently.

"You done?" Nero inquired. Lucea nodded and put a bag on her back. Nero came by and took the other one. "There's someone we need to meet up with who can help us."

"You'll explain then?" Nero nodded as they left the house. Nero felt Lucea glance back at the house. Nero waited calmly for her. "I'm going to miss this place. It's a good thing mother wanted her grave to be the ocean." Lucea stated sadly before catching up with Nero and Lyall. The three of them walked into the city through a backdoor and found Ethelinda waiting for them at her shop. Nero tilted his head when he realized that all of the weapons were gone. Ethelinda merely smiled sweetly and pointed toward the hidden room. Lyall relayed the information.

_**Open Sea, Boat – Late night**_

The waves had calmed down since the rain stopped. Kaiyou woke up from her nap and glanced around the cabin. Kaiyou tilted her head in confusion. Kaiyou stood up and put her hoodie on and walked out onto the deck. Kaiyou turned and saw Raiein sitting on the deck with his head bowed. Kaiyou walked quietly over to him and kneeled in front of him. Kaiyou poked him on the arm.

"Raiein..." Kaiyou whispered softly trying to make sure not to startle him. "Raiein." Raiein stirred and blinked himself awake.

"Kaiyou... how long have you been awake?"

"Just woke up... what are you doing out here? You're completely soaked..." Kaiyou questioned with a tilt of her head. Raiein shrugged and stood up. Kaiyou stood up and looked out toward the darkened horizon. "Is that the island?"

"Yeah, we're actually really close..." Raiein stated calmly. "I'm going to get dried off. When we get closer come get me if I'm not out yet." Kaiyou nodded as Raiein walked into the cabin. Raiein closed the door behind him and sat down at the table and pulled the bandages off his right arm. Raiein stared at the injury and sighed. "It's not healing..."

"It must be what that demon injected into the wound." Kishin stated softly. "It might take a while for it to heal."

"You mean if it ever heals, Kishin. Those things aren't easy to heal from whatever it is." Myoujou stated calmly. Kishin rattled worryingly in his sheath. "Not to mention, I wouldn't be surprised if that demon is stalking us now. Since Kaiyou did slice his captain's hand off..."

"I hate it when you start talking sense." Kishin replied with annoyance. Myoujou chuckled darkly. Raiein sighed under his breath and stared at the injury. It was a really bad color. Raiein fisted his right hand and felt pain run through his arm. Raiein took out a new set of bandages and wrapped it up. He threw the others into the trash and dried off. Raiein opened the door just as Kaiyou had her hand at the knob. She glanced up at him.

"We're almost at the docks." Kaiyou whispered softly. Kaiyou stepped away from the door to let him past. "This island seems weird. The buildings are strange and the people are wearing even stranger clothing." Raiein pulled the boat up next to the dock and secured it.

"That's true. All of the women are wearing dresses while the men are wearing some... tight fitting clothes..." Raiein replied softly.

"You should probably find a shirt... or we'll stand out even more." Kaiyou stated while staring at the extravagant outfits before glancing down at her own. "Should I change my outfit?" Raiein blinked while staring at her.

"Why in the world would you ask me that?" Raiein exclaimed in bewilderment. Kaiyou glanced up at him. Her golden eyes blinking in confusion.

"Why not?" Kaiyou questioned obliviously. Raiein closed his eyes and sighed.

"Never mind. Can you even bring your weapons while wearing a dress?" Raiein inquired while walking toward the cabin door. Kaiyou walked next to him.

"I did it once..." Kaiyou whispered under her breath while entering the cabin.

"Kaiyou?"

"Hmm?" Kaiyou replied absently. Raiein threw a piece of fabric over her. Kaiyou blinked and took it off to look. "A cloak?"

"It's cold enough to wear it. Plus the people here seem to be wearing them too, therefore we won't stand out all that much while staying comfortable in our own clothing." Raiein stated in reply. Kaiyou held the cloak in her hands as Raiein put on his own black ones. Raiein looked at her worryingly. "Something wrong?"

"It's nothing." Kaiyou replied sharply and wrapped the cloak around her. "So what do you believe we will find here? Who do you think we'll meet?"

"I don't know Kaiyou. This island seems weird and I would rather not stay here all that long in case we find someone after you." Raiein stated calmly while scanning the city ports. "Hopefully, we won't run into any more trouble with stuff from a past not ours." Kaiyou nodded before jumping out of the boat and onto the dock. Raiein made sure everything was secure before getting off himself. His eyes were always scanning while Kaiyou started walking without much thought to her surroundings. Kishin's awareness was focused on the noticing the presences of the being around them. Myoujou rattled in his sheath in annoyance of the sounds and sights of their surroundings.

"Why the bloody hell is this place so loud and noisy?" Myoujou stated sternly and loudly. Raiein flinched at Myoujou's voice before glaring at his sword.

"I will melt you, Myoujou. I swear by the oceans I will melt you." Raiein hissed in annoyance under his breath as the duo made their way through the city. Kaiyou glanced at every little shiny thing of interest. Raiein kept one eye on Kaiyou making sure that she didn't get lost or separated from him. Raiein extended his hand to grab her cloak but completely missed her hood as she ran into someone. Raiein closed his eyes in exasperation when the other person grabbed her arm. Kaiyou blinked in surprise as she felt her center of balance shift and fall out of whack before the arm grabbed her.

"I apologize, sweet delicate flower." A poetic baritone male voice said soothingly. Kaiyou glanced up at the owner. She blinked in confusion as Raiein quickly went tense unsure of whether the man was an ally or foe. He let go of her arm once she steadied herself and stepped away from him.

"Sweet delicate flower?" Kaiyou whispered with a tilt of her head. "I don't thi..."

"You are a truly a delicate flower, my lady. A beautiful young lady with such intense orbs piercing my soul is quite indeed a sweet and delicate flower." He interrupted with a smile. His long wavy dark black hair was under the strange pointed hat that sat a top of his head. His dark reddish silver eyes studied the two of them with a smooth stare. "Will you be going to the extravagant masquerade party at the castle tonight, my sweet lady?" Raiein felt himself twitch at the man's speech.

"Party? Oh no. I wasn't invited..." Kaiyou replied quietly. "Who are you?"

"Oh my sweet lady, my utmost apologies for not introducing myself. However, if my sweet lady, more beautiful than the mysterious moonlight, would come to the party, I will gladly introduce myself there." He grabbed her hand and kissed it before bowing and disappearing into the crowd. Kaiyou blinked before turning to face Raiein.

"It could be a trap for all we know, Kaiyou. I call it a dangerous venture... so what is your decision?" Raiein inquired with a tense frown plastered on his face.

"I don't feel comfortable going to a strange party by myself, Raiein. I just got invited by a stranger too." Kaiyou answered quietly. Her eyes were a bit wide in wonder and interest. Raiein sighed and rolled his eyes. "What are you thinking, Raiein? Your frown is quite intense."

"I don't like how he speaks, it's strange and not normal. It feels like he's trying to put me to sleep or something." Raiein stated tensely. "If you really want to go, it would be by yourself. I didn't get invited if you didn't notice. In fact, I find it quite rude that he completely ignored me." Myoujou snickered from his sheath, while Kishin sat there quietly. Raiein pushed down his twitch from Myoujou's outburst.

"We could find a way for you to come with me. Maybe a bodyguard or something?" Kaiyou replied softly. "I mean once we finish restocking, it isn't like we have other things to do until tomorrow."

"Kaiyou, how long were you planning to stay here on this island?" Raiein inquired with that annoying strange frown still plastered onto his face. Kaiyou shrugged and continued walking through the city with Raiein following after her. He shook his head in exasperation but continued after her. "We're going to the party aren't we?"

"Yup. I want to see why there were so many people glaring at me when that man spoke to me. Plus, he was pretty sly about his name in order to get me to go to that party. The least we can do is that I show up and turn the place upside down." Kaiyou stated happily and continued to walk through the city. Raiein followed her with an exasperated sigh. Raiein grabbed her arm and pushed her against the wall with his back to the street. She blinked in surprise at the sudden movement.

"Shh, don't make a sound." Raiein whispered as he continued to watch a person walk past them from the corner of his eye. Kaiyou peeked over his shoulder once the person went past them. Kaiyou glanced up at Raiein's eyes and noticed the dullness that always came with his encounters with demons. After a few minutes, Raiein backed off with a tense stance. Kaiyou poked him and he glared at her. "Sorry, but let's keep our guard up."

"Raiein, we can't keep our guard up for the entire time. We'll get exhausted when we really need it." Kaiyou stated with a calm tone. "I'm still going to go to the party. Maybe we'll learn something else about this city and that person."

"Understood." Raiein paused in thought. "We're going to need more party-like clothing to fit in. Also a masquerade is a party that has those masks, right?" Kaiyou nodded as she glanced through the windows full of dresses and formal wear.

"Raiein..." Kaiyou whispered quietly under her breath. Raiein took notice but didn't say anything. A really simple dress in one of the windows attracted her attention and she quickly entered the store. Raiein stood outside staring into the store with an eye on Kaiyou and her long detours.

A/N: Hey! I hope everyone is still doing well. Sorry for such a long delay in this chapter. I lost a lot of my data early last year and it destroyed my writing muse. However, now I am back and hopefully I will be getting out more chapters in the future. Thank you for your continued support even after our long hiatus.


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